One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

In Los Altos you can estimate when it's the best time to plant corn by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Corn

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

Corn do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant corn in Los Altos 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 corn and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your corn may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your corn indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Los Altos. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Los Altos and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Los Altos there is a last frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your corn if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Los Altos

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 Los Altos

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Los Altos.