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

It's possible to figure out when you can plant california poppy by referring to the USDA zone info for Ruston.

Planting Calendar for California Poppy

Frost tolerance for california poppy:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

California Poppy are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant california poppy in Ruston 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 california poppy and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your california poppy may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your california poppy indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Ruston the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Ruston may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Ruston it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to cover your california poppy if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ruston

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Ruston

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