One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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 common way of determining when you can plant dahlia is to use the USDA zone info for Escondido.

Planting Calendar for Dahlia

Frost tolerance for dahlia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since dahlia require warm weather you really should wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Escondido is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant dahlia and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your dahlia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dahlia indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on February 15 in Escondido. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Escondido may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Escondido there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to cover your dahlia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Escondido

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Escondido

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