The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of figuring out when it's possible to plant catharanthus is to refer to the USDA zone info for Marlin.

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

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

Catharanthus do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in Marlin 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 catharanthus and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your catharanthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your catharanthus indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Marlin. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Marlin is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Marlin it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to cover your catharanthus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Marlin

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 Marlin

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