When to Plant Bell Peppers in Phoenix, AZ

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.

The best time to plant bell peppers in Phoenix can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Bell Peppers

Frost tolerance for bell peppers: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Since bell peppers do not do well in cold weather you must wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant bell peppers
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant bell peppers
Probably not a good time to plant bell peppers

The earliest that you can plant bell peppers in Phoenix 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 bell peppers and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your bell peppers may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your bell peppers indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Phoenix the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Phoenix and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Phoenix last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to protect your bell peppers in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Phoenix

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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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 Phoenix

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