The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can figure out when it's possible to plant penstemon in Zone 9a by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

Penstemon do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Zone 9a 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 penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your penstemon indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Zone 9a. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Zone 9a is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 9a there is a last frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your penstemon in the event of a late frost.

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.