The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Mesquite should be reffered to in order to determine when it's a good idea to plant cuphea.

Planting Calendar for Cuphea

Frost tolerance for cuphea:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

It's a bad idea to plant cuphea until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant cuphea in Mesquite 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 cuphea and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cuphea may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your cuphea indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Mesquite. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Mesquite and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Mesquite you get surprised by a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your cuphea in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mesquite

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Mesquite

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