When to Plant Lupine in Sonora, CA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant lupine in Sonora should be determined by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Lupine

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

Lupine do well in moderate cold which means that you can get them planted earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant lupine
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant lupine
Probably not a good time to plant lupine

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

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Sonora may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Sonora last frost occurs after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your lupine in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Sonora

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 Low20°F
Highest Expected Low25°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 Sonora

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