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 Santa Clara you can estimate when it's the best time to plant gherkins by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

Frost tolerance for gherkins:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Gherkins do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gherkins may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your gherkins 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. You can expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Santa Clara and it is different every year. Half of the time in Santa Clara it frosts late in the year after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your gherkins in the event of a surprise 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.