One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The USDA zone info for Long Beach can be reviewed to figure out when it's possible to plant gomphrena.

Planting Calendar for Gomphrena

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

Gomphrena tend to make it in a tiny bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant gomphrena in Long Beach 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 gomphrena and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gomphrena may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your gomphrena indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Long Beach is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Long Beach you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your gomphrena if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Long Beach

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 Long Beach

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Long Beach.