The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. 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 determining when to plant catharanthus is to check out the USDA zone info for Mount Carmel.

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

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

Catharanthus do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you need to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in Mount Carmel 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 catharanthus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your catharanthus may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your catharanthus indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Mount Carmel. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Mount Carmel is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Mount Carmel last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your catharanthus in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mount Carmel

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Mount Carmel

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Mount Carmel.