One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Santa Cruz you should be able to determine when to plant pole beans.

Planting Calendar for Pole beans

Frost tolerance for pole beans:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since pole beans do not do well in cold weather you need to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant pole beans in Santa Cruz is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pole beans and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pole beans may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your pole beans indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Santa Cruz the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in 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 Santa Cruz and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Santa Cruz you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your pole beans in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.