One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

One way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant ornamental grasses is to consult the USDA zone info for Mesquite.

Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

Frost tolerance for ornamental grasses:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Since ornamental grasses are barely cold tolerant you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses in Mesquite 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 ornamental grasses and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your ornamental grasses may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your ornamental grasses indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Mesquite. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Mesquite is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Mesquite it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to protect your ornamental grasses in the event of a surprise 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.