When to Plant Clover in Houston, TX

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Houston it's a good idea to figure out when it's a good idea to plant clover.


Planting Calendar for Clover

Frost tolerance for clover: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Clover are barely cold tolerant which means that you can plant them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant clover
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant clover
Probably not a good time to plant clover

The earliest that you can plant clover in Houston is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant clover and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your clover may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your clover indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Houston the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Houston and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Houston it frosts late in the year after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your clover if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Houston

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 Low20°F
Highest Expected Low25°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 Houston

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