When to Plant Tagetes in La Palma, CA

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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for La Palma you will be able to estimate when it's the best time to plant tagetes.


Planting Calendar for Tagetes

Frost tolerance for tagetes: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Tagetes do not do well in cold weather which means that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in La Palma. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 35°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for La Palma and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in La Palma you get a frost after January 31 be ready to cover your tagetes in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for La Palma

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)December 15
Lowest Expected Low35°F
Highest Expected Low40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 40°F.

Plants to Grow in La Palma

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