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

The first chance to plant centaurea in Natchitoches can be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Centaurea

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

Since centaurea do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

Last Frost Date

In Natchitoches the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Natchitoches is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Natchitoches there is a last frost after March 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your centaurea if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Natchitoches

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°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 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Natchitoches

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