When to Plant Cucumbers in Portola Valley, CA

One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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 chance to plant cucumbers in Portola Valley should be figured out by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Cucumbers

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

Since cucumbers are not cold tolerant you have to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant cucumbers
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant cucumbers
Probably not a good time to plant cucumbers

The earliest that you can plant cucumbers in Portola Valley 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 cucumbers and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your cucumbers may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your cucumbers indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Portola Valley the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Portola Valley is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Portola Valley last frost occurs after January 31 be ready to protect your cucumbers if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Portola Valley

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 Low30°F
Highest Expected Low35°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 Portola Valley

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Portola Valley.