One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of getting a good idea when it's possible to plant dahlias is to check out the USDA zone info for Long Beach.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

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

Dahlias require warm weather which means that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Long Beach may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Long Beach you get surprised by a frost after January 31 be ready to cover your dahlias in the event of a surprise 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.