When to Plant Pea in Salinas, CA

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 pea in Salinas should be estimated by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Pea

Frost tolerance for pea: Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant: Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant pea a lot earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

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

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

The last month that you can plant pea and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your pea may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your pea indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Salinas the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Salinas and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Salinas you get a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your pea if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Salinas

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 Salinas

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