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.

You can estimate when it's a good idea to plant sweet potatos in San Francisco by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Sweet Potatos

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

Since sweet potatos are not cold tolerant you need to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant sweet potatos in San Francisco 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 sweet potatos and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your sweet potatos may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your sweet potatos indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In San Francisco the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You can expect an average low temperature of 35°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 San Francisco and it is different every year. Half of the time in San Francisco it frosts late in the year after January 31 so be sure to be ready to cover your sweet potatos in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for San Francisco

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	35°F
Highest Expected Low	40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 40°F.

Plants to Grow in San Francisco

You may be interested in your other planting guides for San Francisco.