When to Plant Bunching Onions in El Centro, CA

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.

You can estimate when it's the best time to plant bunching onions in El Centro by referring to the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Bunching Onions

Frost tolerance for bunching onions: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Bunching Onions are barely cold tolerant which means that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant bunching onions
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant bunching onions
Probably not a good time to plant bunching onions

The earliest that you can plant bunching onions in El Centro 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 bunching onions and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your bunching onions may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your bunching onions indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in El Centro. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 30°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for El Centro and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in El Centro there is a last frost after January 31 so just be sure to be ready to cover your bunching onions if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for El Centro

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 Low30°F
Highest Expected Low35°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 El Centro

You may be interested in your other planting guides for El Centro.