One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

A way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant sunflowers is to consult the USDA zone info for Tracy.

Planting Calendar for Sunflowers

Frost tolerance for sunflowers:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since sunflowers do not do well in cold weather it is important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant sunflowers in Tracy 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 sunflowers and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your sunflowers may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your sunflowers indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that USDA zone info for Tracy is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Tracy you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your sunflowers if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Tracy

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 Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°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 Tracy

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