One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

One way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant cerastium is to refer to the USDA zone info for Zone 9b.

Planting Calendar for Cerastium

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

You can plant cerastium a little earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant cerastium in Zone 9b 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 cerastium and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your cerastium may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your cerastium indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Zone 9b. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 9b and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 9b last frost occurs after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your cerastium in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 9b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 9b

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