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.

A way of estimating when it's the best time to plant hamelia is to check out the USDA zone info for Rayne.

Planting Calendar for Hamelia

Frost tolerance for hamelia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's probably not a good idea to plant hamelia until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant hamelia in Rayne 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 hamelia and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your hamelia may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your hamelia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Rayne. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Rayne and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Rayne you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your hamelia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rayne

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 Rayne

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