When to plant in Arbuckle, CA
Planting dates worked out from Arbuckle's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.
Safe to plant out
Apr 7
1 year in 10 has a later frost
Average last frost
Feb 13
about a 50% chance of a later one
Average first fall frost
Nov 29
1 year in 10 by Nov 10
Frost-free days
286
median, 1991–2020
Station used: Colusa 2 Ssw · 19.1 km away · station 15 m, town 43 m. How we match towns to stations
This season
Plan your garden.
Planting dates for common crops
| Crop | Start indoors | Plant out or sow | Harvest from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato | Feb 10 – Feb 24 | Apr 7 – Apr 21 | Jun 1 |
| Sweet pepper | Jan 27 – Feb 10 | Apr 7 – Apr 21 | Jun 6 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Dec 12 – Dec 19 | Jan 16 – Jan 30 | Feb 25 |
| Peas | — | Jan 2 – Jan 30 | Feb 26 |
| Bush beans | — | Mar 31 – Apr 21 | May 20 |
| Carrot | — | Jan 23 – Mar 6 | Mar 24 |
| Beet | — | Jan 16 – Feb 27 | Mar 7 |
| Potato | — | Jan 23 – Feb 13 | Apr 3 |
| Kale | Dec 5 – Dec 19 | Jan 16 – Jan 30 | Feb 28 |
| Broccoli | Dec 5 – Dec 19 | Jan 16 – Feb 6 | Mar 17 |
| Cucumber | Mar 10 – Mar 17 | Apr 7 – Apr 21 | May 27 |
| Summer squash and zucchini | Mar 10 – Mar 17 | Apr 7 – Apr 21 | May 22 |
| Winter squash | Mar 10 – Mar 17 | Apr 7 – Apr 21 | Jun 26 |
| Sweet corn | — | Mar 31 – Apr 21 | May 30 |
| Onion (from sets) | — | Jan 16 – Feb 6 | Apr 16 |
| Garlic | — | Nov 14 – Dec 12 (fall) | following summer |
| Spinach | — | Jan 2 – Jan 30 | Feb 9 |
| Basil | Feb 24 – Mar 10 | Apr 7 – Apr 21 | Jun 3 |
Arbuckle's weather over time
How the growing season has shifted here, year by year, from the station's own records.
Each year's last spring frostLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Last spring frost |
|---|---|
| 1949 | Feb 19 |
| 1950 | Mar 13 |
| 1951 | Mar 11 |
| 1952 | Mar 20 |
| 1954 | Mar 14 |
| 1955 | Apr 27 |
| 1956 | Mar 6 |
| 1957 | Feb 6 |
| 1958 | Mar 9 |
| 1959 | Feb 12 |
| 1960 | Feb 24 |
| 1961 | Mar 7 |
| 1962 | Mar 10 |
| 1963 | Apr 2 |
| 1964 | Mar 10 |
| 1965 | Mar 3 |
| 1966 | Mar 4 |
| 1967 | Mar 29 |
| 1968 | Jan 28 |
| 1969 | Mar 14 |
| 1970 | Jan 6 |
| 1971 | Apr 21 |
| 1972 | Apr 13 |
| 1973 | Mar 22 |
| 1975 | Apr 17 |
| 1976 | Apr 7 |
| 1977 | Mar 31 |
| 1979 | Feb 4 |
| 1980 | Feb 13 |
| 1981 | Jan 13 |
| 1982 | Apr 6 |
| 1983 | Feb 16 |
| 1984 | Feb 23 |
| 1985 | Mar 28 |
| 1986 | Jan 14 |
| 1987 | Mar 20 |
| 1989 | Feb 15 |
| 1990 | Mar 17 |
| 1991 | Apr 15 |
| 1992 | Jan 17 |
| 1993 | Jan 11 |
| 1994 | Mar 22 |
| 1996 | Feb 27 |
| 1997 | Jan 14 |
| 1998 | Jan 5 |
| 1999 | Apr 8 |
| 2000 | Jan 5 |
| 2001 | Apr 7 |
| 2002 | Mar 14 |
| 2003 | Feb 9 |
| 2004 | Jan 23 |
| 2005 | Jan 14 |
| 2006 | Feb 21 |
| 2007 | Jan 31 |
| 2009 | Mar 12 |
| 2011 | Feb 27 |
| 2012 | Feb 27 |
| 2015 | Jan 3 |
| 2016 | Feb 2 |
| 2017 | Jan 6 |
| 2018 | Mar 7 |
| 2019 | Feb 18 |
| 2020 | May 4 |
| 2021 | Jan 28 |
| 2022 | Apr 12 |
| 2023 | Mar 5 |
Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Frost-free days |
|---|---|
| 1949 | 242 |
| 1950 | 292 |
| 1952 | 241 |
| 1954 | 260 |
| 1955 | 188 |
| 1956 | 231 |
| 1957 | 270 |
| 1958 | 250 |
| 1959 | 269 |
| 1960 | 257 |
| 1961 | 251 |
| 1962 | 289 |
| 1963 | 229 |
| 1964 | 247 |
| 1965 | 267 |
| 1966 | 265 |
| 1967 | 238 |
| 1968 | 302 |
| 1969 | 247 |
| 1970 | 341 |
| 1971 | 191 |
| 1972 | 223 |
| 1973 | 225 |
| 1975 | 205 |
| 1976 | 234 |
| 1977 | 231 |
| 1978 | 314 |
| 1979 | 289 |
| 1980 | 271 |
| 1981 | 351 |
| 1982 | 219 |
| 1983 | 317 |
| 1984 | 250 |
| 1985 | 225 |
| 1986 | 315 |
| 1987 | 268 |
| 1989 | 285 |
| 1990 | 247 |
| 1991 | 214 |
| 1992 | 296 |
| 1993 | 307 |
| 1994 | 240 |
| 1996 | 274 |
| 1997 | 341 |
| 1998 | 333 |
| 1999 | 242 |
| 2001 | 267 |
| 2002 | 291 |
| 2003 | 267 |
| 2004 | 310 |
| 2005 | 316 |
| 2006 | 276 |
| 2007 | 298 |
| 2009 | 246 |
| 2010 | 328 |
| 2011 | 280 |
| 2015 | 328 |
| 2016 | 306 |
| 2017 | 333 |
| 2018 | 247 |
| 2019 | 282 |
| 2020 | 189 |
| 2022 | 215 |
| 2023 | 219 |
Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Growing-season temperature |
|---|---|
| 1949 | 21.9 °C |
| 1950 | 22.2 °C |
| 1951 | 21.7 °C |
| 1952 | 21.3 °C |
| 1954 | 21.3 °C |
| 1955 | 21.0 °C |
| 1956 | 21.3 °C |
| 1957 | 21.9 °C |
| 1958 | 22.4 °C |
| 1959 | 22.3 °C |
| 1960 | 22.1 °C |
| 1961 | 22.1 °C |
| 1962 | 21.6 °C |
| 1963 | 20.8 °C |
| 1964 | 20.9 °C |
| 1965 | 20.5 °C |
| 1966 | 22.2 °C |
| 1967 | 21.2 °C |
| 1968 | 21.5 °C |
| 1969 | 21.8 °C |
| 1970 | 21.4 °C |
| 1971 | 21.1 °C |
| 1972 | 21.6 °C |
| 1973 | 22.0 °C |
| 1975 | 20.9 °C |
| 1976 | 21.5 °C |
| 1977 | 21.4 °C |
| 1978 | 21.7 °C |
| 1979 | 22.0 °C |
| 1980 | 20.7 °C |
| 1981 | 22.4 °C |
| 1989 | 20.9 °C |
| 1990 | 21.2 °C |
| 1992 | 22.4 °C |
| 1993 | 21.1 °C |
| 1994 | 20.9 °C |
| 1995 | 20.6 °C |
| 1996 | 21.9 °C |
| 1997 | 22.2 °C |
| 1998 | 20.9 °C |
| 1999 | 20.8 °C |
| 2000 | 21.6 °C |
| 2001 | 21.9 °C |
| 2002 | 21.5 °C |
| 2003 | 21.4 °C |
| 2004 | 21.6 °C |
| 2005 | 21.3 °C |
| 2006 | 21.8 °C |
| 2007 | 21.1 °C |
| 2009 | 22.2 °C |
| 2011 | 20.9 °C |
| 2012 | 22.0 °C |
| 2015 | 22.3 °C |
| 2016 | 22.5 °C |
| 2017 | 23.2 °C |
| 2018 | 22.1 °C |
| 2019 | 22.2 °C |
| 2020 | 21.5 °C |
| 2022 | 22.6 °C |
| 2023 | 20.3 °C |
What this means for you: Since 1949, Arbuckle's last spring frost has come about 3 days earlier per decade, on average. The frost-free season has grown by about 4 days per decade. Year-to-year swings are large, so keep using the safe date rather than the trend.
Source: daily records from Colusa 2 Ssw (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.