Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can estimate when you can plant lenten rose in Santa Cruz by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lenten Rose

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

Lenten Rose tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant lenten rose in Santa Cruz 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 lenten rose and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your lenten rose may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your lenten rose 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 has passed is on February 15 in Santa Cruz. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Santa Cruz and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Santa Cruz there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to cover your lenten rose if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Santa Cruz

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 Santa Cruz

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