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.

In Riverside you can estimate when to plant salvia by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Salvia

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

Since salvia are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Riverside. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Riverside is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Riverside you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your salvia in the event of one of those late frosts.

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 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 Riverside

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