When to Plant Melons in Zone 11a

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can estimate when it's a good idea to plant melons in Zone 11a by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Melons

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

Since melons do not do well in cold weather you must wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant melons
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant melons
Probably not a good time to plant melons

The earliest that you can plant melons in Zone 11a is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant melons and expect a good harvest is probably November. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your melons may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your melons indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 11a it never frosts. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 40°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 11a and it changes from year to year. Since it never frosts in Zone 11a you do not have to be ready to cover your melons in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 11a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 11a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)Never
Average Date of First Frost (fall)Never
Lowest Expected Low40°F
Highest Expected Low45°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 40°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 45°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 11a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 11a.