The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Carmel you can estimate when you can plant lupine by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lupine

Frost tolerance for lupine:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Lupine do well in some cold which means that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant lupine in Carmel 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 lupine and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lupine may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your lupine indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Carmel. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Carmel is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Carmel it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your lupine in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Carmel

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Carmel

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