One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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 determining when it's the best time to plant lobelia is to check out the USDA zone info for Oakland.

Planting Calendar for Lobelia

Frost tolerance for lobelia:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since lobelia are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant lobelia in Oakland 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 lobelia and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lobelia may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your lobelia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Oakland the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Oakland and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Oakland last frost occurs after January 31 so just be sure to be ready to cover your lobelia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Oakland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Oakland

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