One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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.

One way of making a decision about when you can plant bleeding hearts is to consult the USDA zone info for Zone 10b.

Planting Calendar for Bleeding Hearts

Frost tolerance for bleeding hearts:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Bleeding Hearts are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant bleeding hearts in Zone 10b 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 bleeding hearts and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your bleeding hearts may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your bleeding hearts indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Zone 10b. You should expect an average low temperature of 35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 10b and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 10b last frost occurs after January 31 be ready to cover your bleeding hearts if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 10b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	35°F
Highest Expected Low	40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 40°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 10b

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