Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant chicory in Santa Maria can be determined by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Chicory

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

Since chicory do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chicory in Santa Maria 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 chicory and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your chicory may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your chicory indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Santa Maria the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Santa Maria is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Santa Maria there is a last frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your chicory if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Santa Maria

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 Maria

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