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.

The first opportunity to plant tall phlox in National City can be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tall Phlox

Frost tolerance for tall phlox:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Tall Phlox tend to make it in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant tall phlox in National City 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 tall phlox and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tall phlox may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your tall phlox indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in National City. It might get as low as 35°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for National City may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in National City it frosts late in the year after January 31 so make sure that you are ready to cover your tall phlox in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for National City

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 National City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for National City.