One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

In Bakersfield you can determine when it's a good idea to plant tithonia by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tithonia

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

Since tithonia are not cold tolerant you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on February 15 in Bakersfield. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Bakersfield may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Bakersfield last frost occurs after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your tithonia if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Bakersfield

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 Bakersfield

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