One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

The first opportunity to plant decorative kale in Downey can be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Decorative Kale

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

Decorative Kale are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant decorative kale in Downey 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 decorative kale and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your decorative kale may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your decorative kale indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Downey the average date of last frost happens on January 31. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 35°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Downey is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Downey it frosts late in the year after January 31 so make sure that you are ready to protect your decorative kale in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Downey

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 Downey

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