One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The USDA zone info for Lufkin can be looked at to figure out when it's a good idea to plant basil.

Planting Calendar for Basil

Frost tolerance for basil:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Basil do not do well in cold weather which means that it's important to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant basil in Lufkin 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your basil may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your basil indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Lufkin. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Lufkin may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Lufkin you get a frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your basil in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lufkin

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 Lufkin

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