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.

It's possible to determine when it's possible to plant perilla by referring to the USDA zone info for Meridian.

Planting Calendar for Perilla

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

Since perilla do not do well in cold weather you need to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant perilla in Meridian 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 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

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

Since the USDA zone info for Meridian is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Meridian you get a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your perilla in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Meridian

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 Meridian

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