One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Tracy you should be able to determine when it's the best time to plant pincushion flower.

Planting Calendar for Pincushion Flower

Frost tolerance for pincushion flower:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since pincushion flower are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant pincushion flower in Tracy is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pincushion flower and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your pincushion flower may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your pincushion flower indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Tracy and it is different every year. Half of the time in Tracy there is a last frost after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your pincushion flower if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Tracy

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 Tracy

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