One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine 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.

One way of estimating when it's the best time to plant zinnia is to check out the USDA zone info for Tehachapi.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

You really shouldn't plant zinnia until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Tehachapi is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your zinnia may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your zinnia indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Tehachapi. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Tehachapi and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Tehachapi last frost occurs after March 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your zinnia in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Tehachapi

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Tehachapi

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