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.

A way of making a decision about when it's the best time to plant dianthus is to examine the USDA zone info for Dana Point.

Planting Calendar for Dianthus

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

Since dianthus are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant dianthus in Dana Point 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 dianthus and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your dianthus may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dianthus indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Dana Point the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You should expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Dana Point may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Dana Point you get surprised by a frost after January 31 so make sure that you are ready to cover your dianthus in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dana Point

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Dana Point

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Dana Point.