One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant cuphea by referring to the USDA zone info for Sebastopol.

Planting Calendar for Cuphea

Frost tolerance for cuphea:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Cuphea require warm weather which means that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant cuphea in Sebastopol 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 cuphea and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cuphea may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your cuphea indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Sebastopol the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Sebastopol is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Sebastopol it frosts late in the year after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your cuphea if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Sebastopol

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Sebastopol

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Sebastopol.