One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In South El Monte you can estimate when you can plant caladium by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Caladium

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

It's not a good idea to plant caladium 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 caladium in South El Monte is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant caladium and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your caladium may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your caladium indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on January 31 in South El Monte. You can expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for South El Monte is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in South El Monte there is a last frost after January 31 be ready to protect your caladium if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for South El Monte

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in South El Monte

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South El Monte.