One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

The USDA zone info for Bay City can be used to figure out when it's a good idea to plant oenothera.

Planting Calendar for Oenothera

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

Since oenothera are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant oenothera in Bay City 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 oenothera and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your oenothera may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your oenothera indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Bay City the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Bay City and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Bay City last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to protect your oenothera in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bay City

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 Bay City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Bay City.