One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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 the best time to plant carnation is to examine the USDA zone info for Presidio.

Planting Calendar for Carnation

Frost tolerance for carnation:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant carnation a lot earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant carnation in Presidio is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant carnation and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your carnation may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your carnation indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on February 15 in Presidio. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Presidio may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Presidio you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your carnation in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Presidio

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Presidio

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