One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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 Napa you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant squash by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Squash

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

Squash are not cold tolerant which means that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

In Napa the average date of last frost happens on February 15. 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 not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Napa and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Napa you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your squash in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Napa

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 Napa

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