When to Plant Turnips in Gilroy, CA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can determine when it's a good idea to plant turnips in Gilroy by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Turnips

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

It's probably not a good idea to plant turnips until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant turnips in Gilroy 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 turnips and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your turnips may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your turnips indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Gilroy is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Gilroy it frosts late in the year after February 15 be ready to protect your turnips in the event of 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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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.