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.

The USDA zone info for Goleta should be looked at to figure out when it's the best time to plant banana.

Planting Calendar for Banana

Frost tolerance for banana:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since banana do not do well in cold weather it is important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Goleta. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Goleta and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Goleta there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to protect your banana in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Goleta

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 Goleta

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