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.

The USDA zone info for Riverside should be reviewed to estimate when it's possible to plant elephant ears.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

Frost tolerance for elephant ears:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's a bad idea to plant elephant ears until after all chance of frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Riverside is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your elephant ears may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your elephant ears indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Riverside. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Riverside is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Riverside last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your elephant ears if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Riverside

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Riverside

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