Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Arcata you should be able to estimate when you can plant bougainvillea.

Planting Calendar for Bougainvillea

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

Bougainvillea are not cold tolerant which tells us that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant bougainvillea in Arcata 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 bougainvillea and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your bougainvillea may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your bougainvillea indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Arcata. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Arcata is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Arcata it frosts late in the year after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your bougainvillea in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Arcata

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 Arcata

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