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.

A way of estimating when you can plant perilla is to refer to the USDA zone info for Austin.

Planting Calendar for Perilla

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

You should not plant perilla until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

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

The last month that you can plant perilla and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your perilla may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your perilla indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Austin. You can expect an average low temperature of -25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Austin may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Austin last frost occurs after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your perilla in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Austin

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Austin

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