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.

The USDA zone info for Melbourne can be read to figure out when you can plant dill.

Planting Calendar for Dill

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

Dill do ok in moderate cold which means that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant dill in Melbourne 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 dill and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your dill may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your dill indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Melbourne the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Melbourne is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Melbourne you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your dill in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Melbourne

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 Melbourne

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