Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant rudbeckia in Gilroy should be determined by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

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

Rudbeckia do ok in moderate cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant rudbeckia in Gilroy 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 rudbeckia and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your rudbeckia may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your rudbeckia indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Gilroy the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Gilroy may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Gilroy it frosts late in the year after February 15 be ready to protect your rudbeckia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Gilroy

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 Gilroy

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