When to Plant Primula in Chico, CA

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

It's possible to estimate when it's possible to plant primula by checking out the USDA zone info for Chico.


Planting Calendar for Primula

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

Primula tend to make it in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant primula in Chico 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 primula and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your primula may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your primula indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Chico. You should expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chico and it is different every year. Half of the time in Chico last frost occurs after February 15 so always be ready to protect your primula in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chico

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)December 15
Lowest Expected Low20°F
Highest Expected Low25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Chico

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