One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 best time to plant coleus in Zone 9a can be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Coleus

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

Coleus do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant coleus in Zone 9a 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 coleus and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your coleus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your coleus indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Zone 9a. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 9a and it is different every year. Half of the time in Zone 9a you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your coleus if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 9a

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 Zone 9a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 9a.