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.

A common way of figuring out when it's a good idea to plant calendula is to examine the USDA zone info for San Juan Capistrano.

Planting Calendar for Calendula

Frost tolerance for calendula:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since calendula do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant calendula in San Juan Capistrano 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 calendula and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your calendula may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your calendula indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in San Juan Capistrano. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for San Juan Capistrano and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in San Juan Capistrano there is a last frost after January 31 be ready to protect your calendula if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for San Juan Capistrano

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in San Juan Capistrano

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