One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your 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 way of making a decision about when to plant tall phlox is to refer to the USDA zone info for Patterson.

Planting Calendar for Tall Phlox

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

Tall Phlox are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant tall phlox in Patterson is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant tall phlox and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your tall phlox may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your tall phlox indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on February 15 in Patterson. You should expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Patterson is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Patterson you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your tall phlox in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Patterson

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 Patterson

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