One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

The USDA zone info for Shafter should be looked at to estimate when it's possible to plant ornamental grasses.

Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

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

Since ornamental grasses do ok in moderate cold you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses 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 ornamental grasses and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your ornamental grasses may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your ornamental grasses indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks 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.

Since the USDA zone info for Shafter may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Shafter it frosts late in the year after February 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your ornamental grasses if you have a surprise 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.