One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

In Elsa you can estimate when it's possible to plant mimulus by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Mimulus

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

Mimulus are not cold tolerant 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 mimulus in Elsa is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant mimulus and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your mimulus may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your mimulus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Elsa. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Elsa and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Elsa there is a last frost after February 15 so always be ready to protect your mimulus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Elsa

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Elsa

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