One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

The USDA zone info for Soledad should be reffered to in order to determine when it's a good idea to plant chard.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

Chard do well in a little bit of cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

In Soledad the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Soledad and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Soledad you get a frost after February 15 so always be ready to protect your chard if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Soledad

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 Soledad

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