One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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 Angeles you can determine when it's the best time to plant periwinkles by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Periwinkles

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

Since periwinkles require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant periwinkles in Los Angeles 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 periwinkles and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your periwinkles may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your periwinkles indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Los Angeles the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 35°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Los Angeles and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Los Angeles you get surprised by a frost after January 31 be ready to cover your periwinkles in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Los Angeles

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 Los Angeles

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