Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for Santa Fe you will be able to determine when to plant oriental poppies.

Planting Calendar for Oriental poppies

Frost tolerance for oriental poppies:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Oriental poppies do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Santa Fe. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Santa Fe and it is different every year. Half of the time in Santa Fe you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your oriental poppies if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Santa Fe

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 Santa Fe

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Santa Fe.