One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

One way of estimating when it's the best time to plant torch lilys is to use the USDA zone info for San Jose.

Planting Calendar for Torch Lilys

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

Since torch lilys are very cold tolerant you can plant them earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant torch lilys in San Jose 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 torch lilys and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your torch lilys may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your torch lilys indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for San Jose is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in San Jose you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your torch lilys in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for San Jose

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 San Jose

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