Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

The USDA zone info for Artesia can be looked at to estimate when it's possible to plant lupine.

Planting Calendar for Lupine

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

You can plant lupine just a bit earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant lupine in Artesia 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 lupine and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your lupine may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your lupine indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Artesia the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You can expect an average low temperature of 35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Artesia is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Artesia it frosts late in the year after January 31 so be sure to be ready to cover your lupine in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Artesia

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 Artesia

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