Planting planner: Riverside, California
Typical last spring frost January 9 (1 spring in 10 later than February 21). Typical first fall frost December 30 (1 fall in 10 earlier than December 5). Growing season about 362 days.
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Frost doesn't come every year here: about 58 years in 100 have at least one freezing night. The calendar is built on the dates for the years that do.
We don't give a garlic date here. The rule we use, from the University of Minnesota Extension, counts from the first killing frost, and it works where a hard freeze comes every year before the ground freezes. Your county's extension office can tell you when to plant garlic in your climate.
Your typical last frost comes before mid-February. Where winters are this mild, summer heat limits the garden as much as frost does, and most planting happens in fall and late winter. Your county's extension office publishes a calendar made for your climate.
January
- January 9: Snap beans, sweet corn, cucumbers, summer squash (sow outdoors)
- January 23: Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant (plant out)
- January 23: Melons, winter squash, pumpkins, lima beans (sow outdoors)
February
Nothing to start this month.
March
Nothing to start this month.
April
Nothing to start this month.
May
Nothing to start this month.
June
Nothing to start this month.
July
Nothing to start this month.
August
- August 4 to 18: Cabbage for fall (start seeds)
- August 24 to September 7: Broccoli for fall (start seeds)
September
Nothing to start this month.
October
- October 3: Snap beans for fall (last date to sow)
- October 7: Carrots for fall (last date to sow)
- October 8: Cucumbers for fall (last date to sow)
- October 12: Peas for fall (last date to sow)
- October 13: Summer squash for fall (last date to sow)
- October 17: Leaf lettuce and beets for fall (last date to sow)
- October 24 to November 21: Broccoli and cabbage (start seeds indoors)
- October 27: Turnips and kohlrabi for fall (last date to sow)
November
- November 6: Spinach for fall (last date to sow)
- November 7 to December 5: Cauliflower (start seeds indoors)
- November 16: Radishes for fall (last date to sow)
- November 21 to December 12: Eggplant (start seeds indoors)
- November 28 to December 12: Peppers (start seeds indoors)
December
- December 5 to 19: Tomatoes (start seeds indoors)
- December 5: Tomatoes, peppers, squash, melons, cucumbers (watch the forecast)
- December 12 to 26: Peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes, onion sets, turnips (sow outdoors)
- December 12 to 26: Broccoli and cabbage (plant out)
- December 26 to January 9: Beets, carrots, potatoes, Swiss chard (plant outdoors)
- December 26 to January 9: Cauliflower (plant out)
Dates from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 climate normals for Riverside Municipal Airport (station USW00003171), 3 miles from the center of Riverside. Planting rules: Colorado State University Extension GardenNotes #720 (spring), Virginia Cooperative Extension 426-334 (fall crops), University of Minnesota Extension (garlic). Spring bulbs: plant when the soil has cooled to about 50 to 55°F, until a couple of weeks before the ground freezes (University of Wisconsin–Madison Extension). Full details: https://lastfrostdate.com/frost-dates/california/riverside/