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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Mission it's a good idea to determine when you can plant zinnia.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

Frost tolerance for zinnia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Zinnia are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is necessary 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 zinnia in Mission 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your zinnia indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Mission the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Mission is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Mission you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your zinnia in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mission

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 Mission

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