One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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 common way of getting a good idea when you can plant schizanthus is to check out the USDA zone info for Petal.

Planting Calendar for Schizanthus

Frost tolerance for schizanthus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You can not plant schizanthus until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Petal. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Petal 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 Petal last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your schizanthus in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Petal

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Petal

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