One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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 common way of figuring out when to plant schizanthus is to consult the USDA zone info for La Mesa.

Planting Calendar for Schizanthus

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

Since schizanthus 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 schizanthus in La Mesa is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant schizanthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your schizanthus may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your schizanthus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In La Mesa the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for La Mesa and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in La Mesa you get a frost after January 31 be ready to cover your schizanthus in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for La Mesa

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in La Mesa

You may be interested in your other planting guides for La Mesa.