Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

A way of making a decision about when to plant sorrel is to examine the USDA zone info for Santa Maria.

Planting Calendar for Sorrel

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

Since sorrel are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant sorrel 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 sorrel and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your sorrel may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your sorrel indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Santa Maria. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Santa Maria is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Santa Maria last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to protect your sorrel if you have one of those late frosts.

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.