Zone 5 growing seasons are long and the average minimum winter temperature recorded for this zone is around 36-37 degrees. However, temperatures occasionally dip below 20 degrees. In summer, average maximum temperatures are near 102 degrees. Annual rainfall is 10 inches or less throughout Zone 5.

The wide temperature and low humidity variations here exclude some subtropicals that thrive in milder costal climates. However, such heat-loving plants as Orchid tree (Bauhinia sp.), Thevetia (Thevetia peruviana) and Jacaranda (Jacaranda mimosifolia) grow well except in cold microclimates.

Other plants for zone 5 landscapes are the carob (Ceratonia siliqua), Willow acacia (Acacia saligna), Cassia (Cassia sp.), Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea sp.), Australian willow (Geijera parviflora), Silk oak (Grevillea robusta), and Bottletree (Brachychiton populneus).

The fall months of September and October signal the beginning of the planting year in Zine 5. In the case of cool-season annual flowers, fall planting permits a full life cycle before the high temperatures of late April and May.

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone System: roughly equivilent to USDA Zone 9 (Average Annual Minimum Temperature = 20 to 30 degrees F).

Sunset Western Climate Zone System: equivilent to Sunset Zone 13 described in Sunset Western Garden Book.