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.

A way of determining when it's a good idea to plant catharanthus is to look at the USDA zone info for Santa Clara.

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

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

Since catharanthus do not do well in cold weather you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in Santa Clara 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 catharanthus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your catharanthus may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your catharanthus indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Santa Clara the average date of last frost happens on March 15. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Santa Clara is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Santa Clara last frost occurs after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your catharanthus if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Santa Clara

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Santa Clara

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