Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of getting a good idea when you can plant elephant ears is to use the USDA zone info for Hawthorne.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

Frost tolerance for elephant ears:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

It's probably not a good idea to plant elephant ears until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Hawthorne is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your elephant ears may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your elephant ears indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Hawthorne the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 35°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Hawthorne is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Hawthorne you get surprised by a frost after January 31 so just be sure to be ready to protect your elephant ears if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hawthorne

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	35°F
Highest Expected Low	40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 40°F.

Plants to Grow in Hawthorne

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Hawthorne.