USDA Hardiness Zone 11a
Frost Dates for 90404 — Santa Monica, California
Averages from Woodland Hills Pierce College, Ca US, the nearest reporting station, 12.1 miles away.
Plant tender crops after January 24, and expect the first autumn freeze around December 15. That leaves about 329 frost-free days.
- Last spring frost
- January 24
- First fall frost
- December 15
- Growing season
- 329 days
- Hardiness zone
- 11a
50% probability
50% probability
frost-free
40 to 45°F annual low
Planting calendar for 90404
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| November 15 – November 29 | Start peppers and aubergines indoors They need eight to ten weeks under lights before they can go out. |
| November 29 – December 13 | Start tomatoes indoors Six to eight weeks gives a transplant big enough to set fruit early. |
| December 27 – January 10 | Sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radish outdoors These tolerate light frost and prefer to germinate in cool soil. |
| January 24 onward | Transplant tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, cucumbers The average last freeze has passed — still watch the actual forecast. |
| by September 22 | Sow the autumn crop of carrots, beets and brassicas They need about twelve weeks to size up before growth stops. |
| by December 1 | Harvest tender crops, or be ready to cover them A first freeze two weeks early is well within normal variation. |
| December 15 onward | Plant garlic, mulch beds, lift tender bulbs Garlic wants a cold spell; bare soil loses structure over winter. |
What these dates mean
Wait until after January 24 to put tender plants — tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash — in the ground. That is the date by which half of years in Santa Monica, California are past their last freeze. Harvest before December 15, which leaves roughly 329 frost-free days.
ZIP 90404 sits in USDA hardiness zone 11a, meaning the average coldest night of the year falls between 40 to 45°F. Zone decides what survives the winter; frost dates decide when to plant each spring. They are different questions, and a plant can pass one and fail the other.
These are thirty-year NOAA averages for 1991–2020, not a forecast. Any individual year can frost two to three weeks either side of these dates, so check the actual forecast before planting out.