One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Shafter you can estimate when it's the best time to plant gladiolus by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Gladiolus

Frost tolerance for gladiolus:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant gladiolus just a tiny bit earlier in the year because they are barely cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant gladiolus in Shafter is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant gladiolus and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your gladiolus may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your gladiolus indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Shafter. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Shafter is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Shafter there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to cover your gladiolus if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Shafter

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Shafter

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Shafter.