One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for San Mateo should be looked at to estimate when it's the best time to plant shallots.

Planting Calendar for Shallots

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

Shallots are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant shallots in San Mateo 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 shallots and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your shallots may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your shallots 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 Mateo. You should expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for San Mateo may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in San Mateo last frost occurs after January 31 so always be ready to cover your shallots in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for San Mateo

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 Mateo

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