One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

You will be able to determine when it's a good idea to plant lantana by referring to the USDA zone info for Melbourne.

Planting Calendar for Lantana

Frost tolerance for lantana:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since lantana require warm weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant lantana in Melbourne 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 lantana and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lantana may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your lantana indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Melbourne is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Melbourne last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to protect your lantana in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.