Plan your vegetable garden in California

All the statistical weather information you need to prepare a bulletproof plan for your garden in California

Temperature range in California

California has temperatures ranging from 29°F to 103°F, with approximately 286 frost free days.

California has 81 days with average temperature range from 50°F to 90°F that are suitable for growing warm season vegetables and 91 days with average temperature range from 40°F to 80°F that are suitable for growing cool season vegetables

Chart displaying weekly air temperature in California — California air temperature chart based on weather statistics from 2019 to 2023

Total frost free days (after last frost and before first frost)	286
Total days suitable to grow warm season vegetables	81
Total days suitable to grow cool season vegetables	91
Day with highest recorded temperature in past 4 years	September 07: 103°F
Day with lowest recorded temperature in past 4 years	February 23: 29°F
First expected frost date	December 13
Last expected frost date	March 02

Notable temperature facts for gardening in California

Warm season vegetables you can grow in California

Chart displaying days suitable for growing warm season vegetables in California — Days suitable for growing warm season vegetables in California

Warm season vegetables can be planted in California after May 23 when air temperatures are consistently above 50°F (10°C) and soil temperature is above 50°F (10°C)

Good temperature range for warm season vegetables is between 50°F and 90°F. With warm season vegetables it is important to wait until all conditions are optimal, because sudden temperature drop can stun new vegetable growth, this way delaying overall harvest.

Warm season vegetables that can be planted directly into soil in California

Eggplant

Okra

Warm season vegetables that need to be started indoors before transplanting outdoors in California

Tomato

True Melon

Watermelon

Cool season vegetables you can grow in California

Chart displaying days suitable for growing cool season vegetables in California — Days suitable for growing cool season vegetables in California

Cool season vegetables can be planted in California after April 01 when average air temperature is consistently above 40°F (4°C) and soil temperature is above 45°F (7°C)

Good temperature range for cool season vegetables is between 40°F and 80°F. With cool season vegetables it is important to avoid high air temperatures because exposure to high temperatures is most likely to stun growth, cause bitterness and encourage premature bolting in some plants. Plan your cool vegetable planting so they are harvested before hot weather stretch, provide them with additional shading.

Cool season vegetables that can be planted directly into soil in California

Beets

Turnip

Chives

Coriander

Cool season vegetables that need to be started indoors before transplanting outdoors in California

Arugula

Carrot

Kale

Radish

Spinach

Swiss chard

Rhubarb

Parsley

Endive

Parsnip

Kohlrabi

Table with days suitable to grow vegetables in California

Tolerable temperature range for cool season vegetables: 40°F to 80°F

Tolerable temperature range for warm season vegetables: 50°F to 90°F

	Week	Average temperature	Possible min and max temperature	Suitable for cool season vegetables	Suitable for warm season vegetables
1	January 01 - January 03	36°F to 53°F	29°F to 60°F
2	January 04 - January 10	40°F to 55°F	34°F to 60°F	TRUE
3	January 11 - January 17	41°F to 56°F	33°F to 69°F	TRUE
4	January 18 - January 24	39°F to 57°F	31°F to 68°F
5	January 25 - January 31	39°F to 57°F	30°F to 65°F
6	February 01 - February 07	38°F to 56°F	29°F to 66°F
7	February 08 - February 14	40°F to 59°F	29°F to 73°F	TRUE
8	February 15 - February 21	38°F to 57°F	29°F to 67°F
9	February 22 - February 28	38°F to 57°F	29°F to 72°F
10	March 01 - March 07	41°F to 59°F	30°F to 71°F	TRUE
11	March 08 - March 14	41°F to 58°F	33°F to 69°F	TRUE
12	March 15 - March 21	41°F to 59°F	33°F to 70°F	TRUE
13	March 22 - March 28	42°F to 61°F	33°F to 76°F	TRUE
14	March 29 - April 04	43°F to 63°F	33°F to 77°F	TRUE
15	April 05 - April 11	46°F to 66°F	35°F to 84°F	TRUE
16	April 12 - April 18	45°F to 65°F	38°F to 79°F	TRUE
17	April 19 - April 25	48°F to 70°F	39°F to 82°F	TRUE
18	April 26 - May 02	50°F to 73°F	42°F to 83°F	TRUE	TRUE
19	May 03 - May 09	50°F to 72°F	43°F to 85°F	TRUE	TRUE
20	May 10 - May 16	52°F to 74°F	40°F to 84°F	TRUE	TRUE
21	May 17 - May 23	51°F to 72°F	43°F to 84°F	TRUE	TRUE
22	May 24 - May 30	54°F to 76°F	45°F to 89°F	TRUE	TRUE
23	May 31 - June 06	57°F to 80°F	50°F to 91°F	TRUE	TRUE
24	June 07 - June 13	57°F to 80°F	48°F to 93°F	TRUE	TRUE
25	June 14 - June 20	58°F to 82°F	50°F to 95°F		TRUE
26	June 21 - June 27	59°F to 84°F	51°F to 93°F		TRUE
27	June 28 - July 04	60°F to 84°F	54°F to 93°F		TRUE
28	July 05 - July 11	61°F to 86°F	56°F to 96°F		TRUE
29	July 12 - July 18	64°F to 89°F	59°F to 96°F		TRUE
30	July 19 - July 25	64°F to 88°F	59°F to 94°F		TRUE
31	July 26 - August 01	64°F to 88°F	60°F to 94°F		TRUE
32	August 02 - August 08	63°F to 88°F	58°F to 93°F		TRUE
33	August 09 - August 15	64°F to 88°F	58°F to 97°F		TRUE
34	August 16 - August 22	65°F to 88°F	58°F to 98°F		TRUE
35	August 23 - August 29	64°F to 88°F	58°F to 94°F		TRUE
36	August 30 - September 05	63°F to 87°F	55°F to 99°F		TRUE
37	September 06 - September 12	64°F to 88°F	55°F to 103°F		TRUE
38	September 13 - September 19	59°F to 81°F	53°F to 91°F		TRUE
39	September 20 - September 26	58°F to 81°F	52°F to 90°F		TRUE
40	September 27 - October 03	56°F to 79°F	46°F to 92°F	TRUE	TRUE
41	October 04 - October 10	56°F to 80°F	47°F to 90°F	TRUE	TRUE
42	October 11 - October 17	53°F to 76°F	44°F to 88°F	TRUE	TRUE
43	October 18 - October 24	53°F to 75°F	43°F to 86°F	TRUE	TRUE
44	October 25 - October 31	48°F to 69°F	40°F to 83°F	TRUE
45	November 01 - November 07	48°F to 69°F	39°F to 79°F	TRUE
46	November 08 - November 14	44°F to 64°F	34°F to 76°F	TRUE
47	November 15 - November 21	45°F to 64°F	36°F to 76°F	TRUE
48	November 22 - November 28	41°F to 61°F	33°F to 68°F	TRUE
49	November 29 - December 05	42°F to 59°F	32°F to 70°F	TRUE
50	December 06 - December 12	41°F to 57°F	34°F to 67°F	TRUE
51	December 13 - December 19	38°F to 54°F	31°F to 66°F
52	December 20 - December 26	40°F to 56°F	33°F to 64°F	TRUE
53	December 27 - December 31	40°F to 53°F	32°F to 60°F	TRUE

Table with days suitable to grow vegetables in California

Counties in California

For more precise weather statisctics and planting information, please select a County.