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

The USDA zone info for Rancho Santa Margarita should be reffered to in order to figure out when it's possible to plant california poppy.

Planting Calendar for California Poppy

Frost tolerance for california poppy:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant california poppy just a tiny bit earlier in the year because they do ok in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant california poppy in Rancho Santa Margarita 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 california poppy and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your california poppy may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your california poppy indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Rancho Santa Margarita. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 30°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Rancho Santa Margarita is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Rancho Santa Margarita you get a frost after January 31 so be sure to be ready to protect your california poppy in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rancho Santa Margarita

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 Rancho Santa Margarita

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Rancho Santa Margarita.