One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

In Downey you can determine when to plant nicotiana by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Nicotiana

Frost tolerance for nicotiana:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's a bad idea to plant nicotiana until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant nicotiana in Downey 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 nicotiana and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your nicotiana may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your nicotiana indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Downey the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 35°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Downey and it is different every year. Half of the time in Downey it frosts late in the year after January 31 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your nicotiana 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.