One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

One way of estimating when you can plant spearmint is to check out the USDA zone info for Austin.

Planting Calendar for Spearmint

Frost tolerance for spearmint:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Spearmint can survive in pretty solid cold which means that you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant spearmint in Austin 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 spearmint and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your spearmint may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your spearmint indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Austin the average date of last frost happens on May 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Austin is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Austin you get a frost after May 15 be ready to protect your spearmint if you have one of those late frosts.

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.