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.

One way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant oleander is to consult the USDA zone info for Lake Wales.

Planting Calendar for Oleander

Frost tolerance for oleander:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Oleander are not cold tolerant which means that it's important to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant oleander in Lake Wales is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant oleander and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your oleander may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your oleander indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Lake Wales. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Lake Wales may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Lake Wales there is a last frost after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your oleander in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Wales

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Lake Wales

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Wales.