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USDA Hardiness Zone 10a

Frost Dates for 92084 — Vista, California

Averages from Vista, Ca US, the nearest reporting station, 1.8 miles away.

Plant tender crops after January 30, and expect the first autumn freeze around January 7. That leaves about 365 frost-free days.

Last spring frost
January 30

50% probability

First fall frost
January 7

50% probability

Growing season
365 days

frost-free

Hardiness zone
10a

30 to 35°F annual low

Planting calendar for 92084

What to do and when, based on the frost normals for Vista, California
WhenWhat to do
November 21 – December 5

Start peppers and aubergines indoors

They need eight to ten weeks under lights before they can go out.

December 5 – December 19

Start tomatoes indoors

Six to eight weeks gives a transplant big enough to set fruit early.

January 2 – January 16

Sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radish outdoors

These tolerate light frost and prefer to germinate in cool soil.

January 30 onward

Transplant tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, cucumbers

The average last freeze has passed — still watch the actual forecast.

by October 15

Sow the autumn crop of carrots, beets and brassicas

They need about twelve weeks to size up before growth stops.

by December 24

Harvest tender crops, or be ready to cover them

A first freeze two weeks early is well within normal variation.

January 7 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 30 to put tender plants — tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash — in the ground. That is the date by which half of years in Vista, California are past their last freeze. Harvest before January 7, which leaves roughly 365 frost-free days.

ZIP 92084 sits in USDA hardiness zone 10a, meaning the average coldest night of the year falls between 30 to 35°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.

Other zone 10a ZIP codes in California