One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

The first opportunity to plant achimenes in Ponchatoula can be estimated by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Achimenes

Frost tolerance for achimenes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Achimenes do not do well in cold weather which means that you need to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant achimenes in Ponchatoula is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant achimenes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your achimenes may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your achimenes indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in Ponchatoula. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Ponchatoula and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Ponchatoula last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your achimenes if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ponchatoula

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 Ponchatoula

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