One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

One way of getting a good idea when you can plant heliotrope is to use the USDA zone info for Fruitland.

Planting Calendar for Heliotrope

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

Since heliotrope are not cold tolerant it's important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant heliotrope in Fruitland 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 heliotrope and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your heliotrope may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your heliotrope indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Fruitland. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Fruitland may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Fruitland last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your heliotrope if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Fruitland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Fruitland

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