One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

The earliest that you can plant achimenes in Mercer Island should be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Achimenes

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

Since achimenes require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant achimenes in Mercer Island is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant achimenes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your achimenes may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your achimenes indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Mercer Island the average date of last frost happens on March 15. It might get as low as 15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Mercer Island is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Mercer Island last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your achimenes if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mercer Island

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Mercer Island

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Mercer Island.