One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Monterey you should be able to figure out when you can plant ornamental grasses.

Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

Frost tolerance for ornamental grasses:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Ornamental Grasses can survive in some cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses in Monterey 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 ornamental grasses and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your ornamental grasses may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your ornamental grasses indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Monterey the average date of last frost happens on January 31. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 30°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Monterey and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Monterey it frosts late in the year after January 31 be ready to cover your ornamental grasses if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Monterey

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Monterey

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