One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

A way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant alternanthera is to refer to the USDA zone info for Mcallen.

Planting Calendar for Alternanthera

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

Since alternanthera do not do well in cold weather you really should wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The last month that you can plant alternanthera and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your alternanthera may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your alternanthera indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Mcallen the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Mcallen is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Mcallen you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your alternanthera if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Mcallen

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Mcallen

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