The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant melampodium in Costa Mesa should be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Melampodium

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

Since melampodium do not do well in cold weather you have to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant melampodium in Costa Mesa is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant melampodium and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your melampodium may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your melampodium indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Costa Mesa. You can expect an average low temperature of 35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Costa Mesa is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Costa Mesa there is a last frost after January 31 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your melampodium if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Costa Mesa

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 Costa Mesa

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Costa Mesa.