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 Sonoma you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant perilla by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Perilla

Frost tolerance for perilla:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Perilla do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant perilla in Sonoma 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 perilla and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your perilla may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your perilla indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Sonoma. In the coldest months of winter you can 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 Sonoma and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Sonoma you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your perilla if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Sonoma

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 Sonoma

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