The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Santa Ana you can figure out when you can plant balsam by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

Frost tolerance for balsam:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You really shouldn't plant balsam until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant balsam in Santa Ana 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 balsam and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your balsam may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your balsam indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on January 31 in Santa Ana. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 30°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Santa Ana is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Santa Ana it frosts late in the year after January 31 so always be ready to cover your balsam if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Santa Ana

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 Santa Ana

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Santa Ana.