One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your 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.

In South El Monte you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant nigella by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Nigella

Frost tolerance for nigella:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Nigella are very cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them a quite a bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant nigella in South El Monte 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 nigella and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your nigella may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your nigella indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on January 31 in South El Monte. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for South El Monte is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in South El Monte last frost occurs after January 31 so just be sure to be ready to cover your nigella in the event of a surprise 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.