This is an email I sent to a neighbor who was asking the same questions: A good book to get is A Gardener's Companion for the San Joaquin Valley; it is published by the Master Gardens of Fresno County. They say to plant in August from seed: Basil Beans Beets Bok Choy Broccoli Cabbage carrot Cauliflower Chives Dill Endive Fennel Green Onions Kohlrabi Leeks Lettuce Mustard Peas Potatoes Rutabagas Spinach Squash Swiss Chard Turnips To plant in Sept. from plants and * from seed: Broccoli Cabbage Carrots* Cauliflower Chinese Cabbage Garlic Lettuce* Parsley* Peas* Potatoes Radish* Spinach* Sugar Snap Peas* In October: Beets* Broccoli Carrots* Cauliflower Garlic Lettuce* Onion sets Snow Peas* Spinach* Swiss Chard* Turnips*

I'm in zone 10a, but Florida is different than California. Each locality has its own guidelines. Here's a link I found with California planting dates- Here is a link that might be useful: Link

I hit the wrong button above and hadn't finished writing. I see the title got clipped. It should say zone 9b. Anyway, I think I covered everything, except to mention that I also picked up Asarina erubescens (not one of our original picks, but it just looks very easy. I have not grown Asarinas before.

I grew Catskill last year. I started from seed on June 20 and transplanted to the garden on August 1. They grew well but cabbage worms were somewhat of a problem and I had to treat with BT-K once a week or so to keep them at bay (this year I plan to use shade cloth/row cover). My plants got about 30+" tall and started to put on sprouts in early October. The sprouts never did get very big, maybe the size of a large marble but there were a lot of them. Some of the sprouts higher up on the stalk never did firm up. One of the plants stalk kind of grew sideways and that plant never did put on sprouts. I have learned that you want to make sure the stalk stays vertical for best production. I ordered a hybrid type this year called Jade Cross E which are a couple weeks earlier than Catskill and are supposed to be more reliable for sprout production and size. I will start 8 from seed in mid June and plant out into a 4x8 raised bed around July 20 and protect with shade cloth. They are going to follow my first planting of bush beans (Provider) so they can benefit from any added nitrogen that the bean roots can provide.