One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Long Beach should be read to determine when it's a good idea to plant caladium.

Planting Calendar for Caladium

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

It's a bad idea to plant caladium until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant caladium in Long Beach 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. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your caladium may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your caladium indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Long Beach the average date of last frost happens on January 31. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 35°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Long Beach and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Long Beach you get a frost after January 31 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your caladium in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Long Beach

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 Low	35°F
Highest Expected Low	40°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 Long Beach

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Long Beach.