When to Plant Millet in Riverside, CA

One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Riverside you should be able to figure out when to plant millet.


Planting Calendar for Millet

Frost tolerance for millet: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Millet require warm weather which tells us that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant millet in Riverside 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 millet and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your millet may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your millet indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on February 15 in Riverside. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Riverside is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Riverside you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your millet if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Riverside

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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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 Riverside

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