One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to estimate when it's the best time to plant chives by reviewing the USDA zone info for Venice.

Planting Calendar for Chives

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

Chives tend to make it in pretty solid cold which tells us that you can plant them earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

In Venice the average date of last frost happens on January 31. It might get as low as 30°F during 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 Venice and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Venice you get a frost after January 31 so always be ready to cover your chives if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Venice

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 Venice

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