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.

In California you can determine when it's a good idea to plant salpiglossis by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Salpiglossis

Frost tolerance for salpiglossis:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since salpiglossis are not cold tolerant it is important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant salpiglossis in California 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 salpiglossis and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your salpiglossis may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your salpiglossis indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In California the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for California is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in California it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your salpiglossis if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for California

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in California

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