One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Inverness it's possible to figure out when to plant california poppy.

Planting Calendar for California Poppy

Frost tolerance for california poppy:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Since california poppy are barely cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Inverness. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Inverness is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Inverness last frost occurs after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your california poppy in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Inverness

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 Inverness

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