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

You should be able to determine when it's possible to plant dahlias by reviewing the USDA zone info for Whittier.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

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

Since dahlias require warm weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Whittier 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your dahlias indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Whittier. You can expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Whittier is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Whittier there is a last frost after January 31 be ready to cover your dahlias in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Whittier

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 Whittier

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