One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 Helotes can be reffered to in order to figure out when to plant painted tongues.

Planting Calendar for Painted Tongues

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

Since painted tongues are not cold tolerant you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

In Helotes the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Helotes is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Helotes you get a frost after March 15 be ready to protect your painted tongues if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Helotes

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Helotes

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