One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

You should be able to figure out when you can plant heliotrope by referring to the USDA zone info for Killeen.

Planting Calendar for Heliotrope

Frost tolerance for heliotrope:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

It's probably not a good idea to plant heliotrope until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant heliotrope in Killeen 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 heliotrope and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your heliotrope may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your heliotrope indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Killeen 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.

It's important to remember 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 Killeen and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Killeen last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your heliotrope in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Killeen

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 Killeen

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