The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of getting a good idea when to plant broccoli is to refer to the USDA zone info for Novato.

Planting Calendar for Broccoli

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

Broccoli are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant broccoli in Novato 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 broccoli and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your broccoli may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your broccoli indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Novato the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Novato may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Novato you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so always be ready to cover your broccoli if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Novato

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 Novato

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