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

In Orinda you can estimate when it's possible to plant black pepper by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Black pepper

Frost tolerance for black pepper:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

You really shouldn't plant black pepper until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant black pepper in Orinda 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 black pepper and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your black pepper may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your black pepper indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Orinda. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Orinda and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Orinda you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your black pepper if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Orinda

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 Orinda

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