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.

By using the USDA zone info for Lathrop you should be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant black pepper.

Planting Calendar for Black pepper

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

Black pepper are not cold tolerant which means that you need to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant black pepper in Lathrop 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 black pepper and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your black pepper may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your black pepper indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on February 15 in Lathrop. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Lathrop may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Lathrop there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to protect your black pepper if you have one of those late frosts.

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.