One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

You can estimate when it's the best time to plant turnips in Orinda by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Turnips

Frost tolerance for turnips:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since turnips are not cold tolerant you need to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant turnips 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 turnips and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your turnips may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your turnips 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. You can expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Orinda is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Orinda last frost occurs after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your turnips 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.