Zone 10 Planting Schedule: What to Plant Month by Month

In zone 10, the main vegetable season runs from September to March, not spring to fall. You plant tomatoes, peppers, beans, lettuce, broccoli and carrots in late summer and fall, harvest all winter, and switch to heat-tolerant crops like okra, sweet potatoes and southern peas for the hottest months. Southern California’s coast follows a gentler rhythm, with tomatoes planted in spring.

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What zone 10 means for your garden

On the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, zone 10 is where the coldest winter night averages between 30°F and 40°F (10a: 30 to 35°F, 10b: 35 to 40°F). That makes tender crops like peppers and eggplant behave almost like perennials, and it means “winter” is a growing season, not a rest period.

Zone describes winter cold, not frost dates. Frost dates come from NOAA climate normals, and in zone 10 many stations record no average frost at all. You can check yours on our frost dates by zone page. Microclimates matter here too, because a low spot in an inland valley can frost while a coastal garden a few miles away never does.

Where is zone 10?

• South and central Florida: Tampa, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Fort Myers, Naples and West Palm Beach. Much of Miami and the Keys now rate zone 11, but this schedule fits them too.
• Southern California: Los Angeles, Long Beach, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Riverside and Carlsbad. Coastal San Diego and Santa Monica are mostly zone 11a, with a similar calendar.
• Low desert: central Phoenix, Palm Springs, Indio and Yuma.
• Texas: Corpus Christi and parts of the Rio Grande Valley.

Our USDA hardiness zones guide shows how to look up your exact zone by ZIP code.

Zone 10 planting schedule, month by month

Zone 10 has three distinct climates: humid South Florida, the mild Southern California coast and the low desert. The table gives the typical plan for each month, with region notes where they differ. For a deeper look at the busiest stretch, see what to plant in November.

When to plant vegetables in zone 10: crop-by-crop table

These windows are adapted from UF/IFAS (South Florida), UC Master Gardener programs in Los Angeles and San Diego counties, and the University of Arizona (Maricopa County). In zone 10, “spring planting” means late winter through early summer and “fall planting” means late summer through winter.

How the three zone 10 regions differ

• South Florida: UF/IFAS lists tomatoes from August to February, broccoli from October to January and Irish potatoes from October to January. Summer rain, heat and pests make June to August a cover-crop season.
• Southern California coast: mild all year, with cool, foggy late spring days (“May gray” and “June gloom”) that slow tomatoes near the beach. UC Master Gardeners in San Diego list coastal tomato plantings from March to July and peas, lettuce and brassicas from September to March.
• Low desert: the University of Arizona calendar has tomatoes, peppers and eggplant going in as transplants in February and March, with cool-season crops from September to November. Summers above 105°F stop most crops cold.

Short-day onions and pre-chilled garlic

Only short-day onions bulb this far south. Plant varieties like Granex or Red Creole as sets or transplants from October to February. Garlic needs several weeks of cold to form bulbs, so chill cloves in the refrigerator before planting in late fall, and pick softneck or Creole types. Our guide on when to plant garlic explains how.

Growing through the heat in zone 10

Summer is the off-season for most vegetables in zone 10, especially in South Florida and the desert. These steps keep your soil and your harvest going:

• Switch to heat-lovers. Okra, sweet potatoes, southern peas, yardlong beans, hot peppers, and tropical greens like Malabar spinach handle 90°F+ days.
• Plant tomatoes for the right window. Tomato fruit set drops when nights stay above about 75°F and days above about 90°F, which is why Florida grows them from fall to spring.
• Use shade cloth. In the desert, 40-50% shade cloth over peppers and late tomatoes prevents sunscald.
• Solarize or cover crop. UF/IFAS suggests clear plastic over moist soil during the warmest six weeks of summer, or a cover crop of sunn hemp or cowpeas.
• Water deeply and mulch. Drip irrigation under 3 inches of mulch saves water and keeps roots cooler.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Planting a spring garden on a northern schedule in South Florida, then watching it collapse in June heat and rain.
• Waiting until spring to plant lettuce, broccoli and peas, which bolt or struggle as days heat up.
• Buying long-day onions or unchilled garlic, which rarely form good bulbs here.
• Planting desert tomatoes in April, too late for fruit to set before 100°F days.
• Expecting beefsteak tomatoes to ripen well in coastal “June gloom.” Cherry and early varieties cope better.
• Leaving beds bare all summer, which invites weeds and nematodes.

FAQ

Keep reading

• Vegetable Planting Calendar: When to Plant Every Crop, Any Zone
• What to Plant in October: A Zone-by-Zone Vegetable Guide
• Fall Vegetable Garden: What to Plant and When, by Zone

Sources

• Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide (SP 103) – UF/IFAS Extension
• Vegetable Gardens by Season – UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions
• San Diego County Vegetable Planting Guide – UC Master Gardener Program, UC ANR
• Vegetable Gardening, Los Angeles County – UC Master Gardeners, UC ANR
• Vegetable Planting Calendar for Maricopa County – University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
• Frost Protection – University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
• USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map – USDA Agricultural Research Service