Sour cherry · Mexico City, Mexico City, Mexico
When to plant sour cherries in Mexico City
Main outdoor window
17 Nov - 26 Jan
A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.
Timed from last spring frost
9 February
In Mexico City, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
1 Jul - 31 Aug
If you plant at the start of the window.
The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.
Step by step in Mexico City
Download these planting dates (.ics)
Import into Apple Calendar, Google Calendar or Outlook. Dates use the selected risk level and are planning estimates, not frost alerts.
Each window is a planning range. Check the forecast, soil and cultivar before planting; a later date is not automatically safer in hot or wet conditions.
Plant the tree
17 Nov - 26 Jan
Any time the plant is dormant and the ground is neither frozen nor waterlogged: after leaf fall in autumn, or at the end of winter before growth restarts.
Harvest
1 Jul - 31 Aug
Sour cherries through the year
Against the frost risk in Mexico City
Seasonal context
Rainfall and the growing season in Mexico City
July has the highest average precipitation (156 mm); December has the lowest (6 mm). Compare this pattern with the planting windows and your water supply.
During wetter months, check that beds and containers drain after heavy rain. During drier months, plan how you will keep seeds and new transplants watered. Monthly averages can hide long dry spells and intense storms; they do not show soil moisture, humidity or this week's weather.
Source: NASA POWER, corrected MERRA-2 precipitation, 2001–2020. Values are approximate monthly totals, including the water equivalent of snow, from the nearest 0.5° × 0.625° grid cell. This reference period differs from the temperature record. Rainfall provides context and does not change the calculated planting dates. Method and limitations.
Monthly growing conditions in Mexico City
Compare the planting window with the local temperature pattern. These are historical monthly averages, not this year's forecast or measured soil temperatures. Average frost days do not tell you whether a particular night will freeze.
| Month | Average low | Average high | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4°C (39.3°F)39.3°F (4°C) | 19.3°C (66.7°F)66.7°F (19.3°C) | 1.3 |
| February | 5°C (41°F)41°F (5°C) | 21.7°C (71°F)71°F (21.7°C) | 0.7 |
| March | 6.5°C (43.6°F)43.6°F (6.5°C) | 24°C (75.2°F)75.2°F (24°C) | 0.2 |
| April | 8.6°C (47.4°F)47.4°F (8.6°C) | 25.9°C (78.6°F)78.6°F (25.9°C) | 0.0 |
| May | 10.1°C (50.2°F)50.2°F (10.1°C) | 26°C (78.8°F)78.8°F (26°C) | 0.0 |
| June | 10.5°C (51°F)51°F (10.5°C) | 23.5°C (74.4°F)74.4°F (23.5°C) | 0.0 |
| July | 10°C (50.1°F)50.1°F (10°C) | 21.5°C (70.8°F)70.8°F (21.5°C) | 0.0 |
| August | 10°C (49.9°F)49.9°F (10°C) | 21.1°C (70.1°F)70.1°F (21.1°C) | 0.0 |
| September | 9.7°C (49.4°F)49.4°F (9.7°C) | 20.3°C (68.5°F)68.5°F (20.3°C) | 0.0 |
| October | 7.8°C (46.1°F)46.1°F (7.8°C) | 20°C (68°F)68°F (20°C) | 0.3 |
| November | 5.9°C (42.6°F)42.6°F (5.9°C) | 19.6°C (67.3°F)67.3°F (19.6°C) | 0.8 |
| December | 4.6°C (40.4°F)40.4°F (4.6°C) | 19.2°C (66.6°F)66.6°F (19.2°C) | 0.8 |
For sour cherries, also check drainage, sunlight and cultivar requirements. See the rainfall context above; humidity, irrigation and local pest pressure are not calculated.
Local growing check
Before choosing sour cherries for Mexico City
- July is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 156 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
The temperature and rainfall tables on this page show the underlying climate estimates. How these suitability checks work · Record what happens in your garden.
Before you plant sour cherries
Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.
- Frost tolerance does not make saturated or frozen soil suitable for planting. Wait until the bed can be worked without smearing or compacting it.
- Check the cultivar’s winter chill requirement with a local nursery. Hardiness zones measure winter cold, not chill hours; this site does not calculate a local chill-hour total.
- Check mature size, drainage and cultivar suitability before choosing a permanent position. A suitable planting window does not guarantee long-term survival or fruiting.
Choose sour cherries for cooking and manageable fruit production
Use drained soil and enough light, allowing access for harvest and pruning. Remove unwanted suckers before they form a thicket. Do not confuse a double-flowered ornamental cherry with a tree selected for fruit.
Inspect the crop as it ripens and plan protection from birds where needed. Use local guidance for stone-fruit pruning and disease management. Keep a record of fruit set as well as harvest so losses to wildlife are not mistaken for a pollination failure.
What to record this season
How much ripe fruit could be picked before birds or weather damaged it? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.
Further reading: NC State Extension: Prunus cerasus . General crop guidance; local dates on this site are calculated separately. Source checked 19 September 2026 by Safe to Plant; this is not an expert review.
The reference describes plant identity and cultivation. Its regional calendar months and hardiness observations do not validate the calculated dates for another location.
How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy
Why these dates
Use drained soil and enough light, allowing access for harvest and pruning. Remove unwanted suckers before they form a thicket. Do not confuse a double-flowered ornamental cherry with a tree selected for fruit.
Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.
Sour cherries are planted once and then left in place, so there is no sowing offset to resolve. What matters in Mexico City is the shape of the year: this crop is dormant through the winter and is planted while it sleeps, any time between leaf fall in autumn and the restart of growth in spring, so long as the ground is neither frozen nor waterlogged. That is why the window below spans the cold months rather than sitting in the middle of the growing season.
Mexico City sits in zone 9b, which is above the catalog range. Confirm the exact cultivar locally; a zone number alone cannot measure summer heat or winter chill. The calculated dates do not confirm that this crop is suitable here. Check cultivar requirements and local growing experience before planting.
The general establishment guide is around year 3, under suitable conditions. This is not a prediction for this location; cultivar, winter conditions and care determine whether it crops reliably.
Nearby
Sour cherries in places close by
Also in Mexico City
Other fruits to time
Growing sour cherries in Mexico City
Can I grow sour cherries in Mexico City?
The calendar estimates a planting window, not a guarantee of success. July is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 156 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
When should I plant sour cherries in Mexico City?
Aim for 17 Nov - 26 Jan in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 25 Oct - 20 Feb - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
When might sour cherries be ready to harvest in Mexico City?
The estimated period is 1 Jul - 31 Aug, based on 60 to 80 days from the modeled planting date. Cultivar, planting material and growing conditions can change this interval; check the plant as well as the calendar.
How much frost will sour cherries tolerate?
Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.