One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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 a good idea to estimate when it's a good idea to plant mimulus by using the USDA zone info for Carlsbad.

Planting Calendar for Mimulus

Frost tolerance for mimulus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since mimulus require warm weather it is important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant mimulus in Carlsbad 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 mimulus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your mimulus may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your mimulus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Carlsbad. You can expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Carlsbad 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 Carlsbad you get surprised by a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your mimulus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Carlsbad

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 Carlsbad

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