One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

A common way of estimating when you can plant perilla is to check out the USDA zone info for Independence.

Planting Calendar for Perilla

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

It's not a good idea to plant perilla until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant perilla in Independence is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant perilla and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your perilla may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your perilla indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Independence. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Independence is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Independence last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your perilla if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Independence

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°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 -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Independence

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