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.

The best time to plant dahlias in Palmetto should be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Dahlias do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Palmetto 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Palmetto. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Palmetto is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Palmetto last frost occurs after February 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your dahlias if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Palmetto

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 Palmetto

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