When to Plant Purple Rock Cress in Santa Maria, CA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out 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 it's possible to plant purple rock cress in Santa Maria by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Purple Rock Cress

Frost tolerance for purple rock cress: Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant: Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant purple rock cress earlier in the year because they do well in cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant purple rock cress
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant purple rock cress
Probably not a good time to plant purple rock cress

The earliest that you can plant purple rock cress 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 purple rock cress and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your purple rock cress may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your purple rock cress indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Santa Maria. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Santa Maria is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Santa Maria there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to cover your purple rock cress if you have a 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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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.