When to Plant Potatos in Winters, CA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to determine when to plant potatos by looking at the USDA zone info for Winters.


Planting Calendar for Potatos

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

You can plant potatos quite a bit earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant potatos
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant potatos
Probably not a good time to plant potatos

The earliest that you can plant potatos in Winters 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 potatos and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your potatos may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your potatos indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Winters the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Winters and it is different every year. Half of the time in Winters it frosts late in the year after February 15 so always be ready to protect your potatos in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Winters

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)December 15
Lowest Expected Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Winters

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