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.

In Ojai you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant watermelon by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Watermelon

Frost tolerance for watermelon:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Watermelon are not cold tolerant which tells us that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant watermelon in Ojai 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 watermelon and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your watermelon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your watermelon indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Ojai the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Ojai is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Ojai it frosts late in the year after February 15 be ready to cover your watermelon if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ojai

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 Ojai

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