One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant balsam in Pinole can be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

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

Since balsam are not cold tolerant it's necessary to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant balsam in Pinole is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant balsam and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your balsam may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your balsam indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Pinole the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You can expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Pinole is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Pinole you get a frost after January 31 be ready to cover your balsam if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Pinole

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Pinole

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