One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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 Montebello should be reffered to in order to estimate when you can plant fennel.

Planting Calendar for Fennel

Frost tolerance for fennel:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since fennel are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them much earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant fennel in Montebello is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant fennel and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your fennel may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your fennel indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Montebello. You should expect an average low temperature of 35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Montebello may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Montebello you get a frost after January 31 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your fennel in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Montebello

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 Montebello

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Montebello.