One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

You can figure out when it's the best time to plant tropical hibiscus in California by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Hibiscus

Frost tolerance for tropical hibiscus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since tropical hibiscus require warm weather you really should wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tropical hibiscus 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 tropical hibiscus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tropical hibiscus may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your tropical hibiscus indoors.

Last Frost Date

In California the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for California is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in California it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to cover your tropical hibiscus 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.