One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's a good idea to plant dahlia by looking at the USDA zone info for Zone 10a.

Planting Calendar for Dahlia

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

Since dahlia do not do well in cold weather it's important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Zone 10a is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant dahlia and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your dahlia may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your dahlia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Zone 10a. You should expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Zone 10a is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 10a there is a last frost after January 31 so be sure to be ready to protect your dahlia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 10a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 10a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 10a.