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.

You should be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant hollyhocks by checking out the USDA zone info for Downey.

Planting Calendar for Hollyhocks

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

Since hollyhocks are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant hollyhocks 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 hollyhocks and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your hollyhocks may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your hollyhocks 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 should 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 will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Downey there is a last frost after January 31 so be sure to be ready to cover your hollyhocks if you have 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.