One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Lake Charles it's a good idea to determine when you can plant pennisetum.

Planting Calendar for Pennisetum

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

Pennisetum are barely cold tolerant which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant pennisetum in Lake Charles 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 pennisetum and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your pennisetum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your pennisetum indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Lake Charles the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Lake Charles is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Lake Charles last frost occurs after February 15 so always be ready to protect your pennisetum in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Charles

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°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 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Lake Charles

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Charles.