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.

By using the USDA zone info for Orinda you should be able to estimate when you can plant roses.

Planting Calendar for Roses

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

Since roses are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant roses in Orinda 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 roses and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your roses may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your roses indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Orinda 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 Orinda is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Orinda it frosts late in the year after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your roses in the event of 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.