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.

A way of determining when to plant artichokes is to look at the USDA zone info for Chowchilla.

Planting Calendar for Artichokes

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

Since artichokes are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant artichokes in Chowchilla 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 artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your artichokes may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your artichokes indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Chowchilla the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Chowchilla is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Chowchilla it frosts late in the year after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your artichokes in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chowchilla

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 Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°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 Chowchilla

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