Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out 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 Lathrop it's a good idea to determine when it's a good idea to plant artichokes.

Planting Calendar for Artichokes

Frost tolerance for artichokes:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since artichokes are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant artichokes in Lathrop is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your artichokes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your artichokes 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 Lathrop. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Lathrop is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Lathrop you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your artichokes if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lathrop

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 Lathrop

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