One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Zone 12b you can determine when it's the best time to plant pennisetum by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Pennisetum

Frost tolerance for pennisetum:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Pennisetum are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant pennisetum in Zone 12b 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 pennisetum and expect a good harvest is probably November. If you wait any later than that and your pennisetum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your pennisetum indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 12b it never frosts. It might get as low as 55°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 12b and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since it never frosts in Zone 12b you do not have to be ready to cover your pennisetum in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 12b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 12b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	Never
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	Never
Lowest Expected Low	55°F
Highest Expected Low	60°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 55°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 60°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 12b

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 12b.