When to Plant Iceberg lettuce in Zone 12a

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.

The USDA zone info for Zone 12a should be reviewed to determine when you can plant iceberg lettuce.


Planting Calendar for Iceberg lettuce

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

Iceberg lettuce do ok in a tiny bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant iceberg lettuce in Zone 12a 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 iceberg lettuce and expect a good harvest is probably November. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your iceberg lettuce may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your iceberg lettuce indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 12a it never frosts. It might get as low as 50°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 12a is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since it never frosts in Zone 12a you do not have to be ready to cover your iceberg lettuce if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 12a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 12a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)Never
Average Date of First Frost (fall)Never
Lowest Expected Low50°F
Highest Expected Low55°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 50°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 55°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 12a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 12a.