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

In Sebastopol you can estimate when it's the best time to plant dahlias by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You should not plant dahlias until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Sebastopol. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Sebastopol and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Sebastopol you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your dahlias in the event of 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.