One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can determine when it's a good idea to plant artichokes in South Houston by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Artichokes

Frost tolerance for artichokes:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Artichokes can survive in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant artichokes in South Houston 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 artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your artichokes may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your artichokes indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in South Houston. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for South Houston may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in South Houston there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to protect your artichokes if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for South Houston

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 South Houston

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Houston.