The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Santa Ana you can determine when to plant painted tongues by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Painted Tongues

Frost tolerance for painted tongues:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since painted tongues are not cold tolerant it's necessary to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

In Santa Ana the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Santa Ana and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Santa Ana there is a last frost after January 31 be ready to cover your painted tongues in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.