One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant dahlias is to check out the USDA zone info for Fort Bragg.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

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

Since dahlias require warm weather you really should wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Fort Bragg 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on February 15 in Fort Bragg. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Fort Bragg and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Fort Bragg it frosts late in the year after February 15 be ready to cover your dahlias if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Fort Bragg

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 Fort Bragg

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Fort Bragg.