One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Zone 10a it's a good idea to determine when you can plant dahlias.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Dahlias do not do well in cold weather which means that it is important to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Zone 10a. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Zone 10a is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 10a last frost occurs after January 31 so just be sure to be ready to protect your dahlias in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.