The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Charleston you can determine when it's a good idea to plant maltese cross by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Maltese Cross

Frost tolerance for maltese cross:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Maltese Cross are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant maltese cross in Charleston is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant maltese cross and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your maltese cross may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your maltese cross indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Charleston. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Charleston may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Charleston you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your maltese cross in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Charleston

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

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

Plants to Grow in Charleston

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