One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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 USDA zone info for Opelousas should be reviewed to estimate when you can plant balsam.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

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

Balsam do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Opelousas. You can expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Opelousas is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Opelousas there is a last frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your balsam in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Opelousas

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 Opelousas

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