USDA Hardiness Zone 10b
Frost Dates for 93108 — Santa Barbara, California
Averages from Santa Barbara, Ca US, the nearest reporting station, 3.2 miles away.
Plant tender crops after January 13, and expect the first autumn freeze around January 6. That leaves about 365 frost-free days.
- Last spring frost
- January 13
- First fall frost
- January 6
- Growing season
- 365 days
- Hardiness zone
- 10b
50% probability
50% probability
frost-free
35 to 40°F annual low
Planting calendar for 93108
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| November 4 – November 18 | Start peppers and aubergines indoors They need eight to ten weeks under lights before they can go out. |
| November 18 – December 2 | Start tomatoes indoors Six to eight weeks gives a transplant big enough to set fruit early. |
| December 16 – December 30 | Sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radish outdoors These tolerate light frost and prefer to germinate in cool soil. |
| January 13 onward | Transplant tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, cucumbers The average last freeze has passed — still watch the actual forecast. |
| by October 14 | Sow the autumn crop of carrots, beets and brassicas They need about twelve weeks to size up before growth stops. |
| by December 23 | Harvest tender crops, or be ready to cover them A first freeze two weeks early is well within normal variation. |
| January 6 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 13 to put tender plants — tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash — in the ground. That is the date by which half of years in Santa Barbara, California are past their last freeze. Harvest before January 6, which leaves roughly 365 frost-free days.
ZIP 93108 sits in USDA hardiness zone 10b, meaning the average coldest night of the year falls between 35 to 40°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.