When to Plant Iceberg lettuce in Zone 9a

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.

You can determine when it's possible to plant iceberg lettuce in Zone 9a by looking at the USDA zone info.


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 are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier 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 9a 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 iceberg lettuce and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your iceberg lettuce may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your iceberg lettuce indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 9a the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 9a may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 9a there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to cover your iceberg lettuce if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 9a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)December 15
Lowest Expected Low20°F
Highest Expected Low25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 9a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 9a.