One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

In Stafford you can determine when it's the best time to plant nicotiana by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Nicotiana

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

It's not a good idea to plant nicotiana until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant nicotiana in Stafford 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 nicotiana and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your nicotiana may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your nicotiana indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Stafford the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Stafford is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Stafford it frosts late in the year after February 15 be ready to protect your nicotiana if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Stafford

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 Stafford

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