When to Plant Caladium in Lake Forest, 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.

The first chance to plant caladium in Lake Forest can be determined by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Caladium

Frost tolerance for caladium: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Caladium are not cold tolerant which means that it's important to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant caladium in Lake Forest 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 caladium and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your caladium may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your caladium indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on January 31 in Lake Forest. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Lake Forest is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Lake Forest there is a last frost after January 31 be ready to protect your caladium if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Forest

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 Low30°F
Highest Expected Low35°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 Lake Forest

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Forest.