One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Cotati you should be able to estimate when it's a good idea to plant oriental poppies.

Planting Calendar for Oriental poppies

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

Since oriental poppies do well in moderate cold you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant oriental poppies in Cotati 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 oriental poppies and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your oriental poppies may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your oriental poppies indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Cotati. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Cotati is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Cotati you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your oriental poppies in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Cotati

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 Cotati

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