Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Gainesville should be reviewed to determine when to plant hardy hibiscus.

Planting Calendar for Hardy Hibiscus

Frost tolerance for hardy hibiscus:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since hardy hibiscus do well in cold you can plant them much earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant hardy hibiscus in Gainesville is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant hardy hibiscus and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your hardy hibiscus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your hardy hibiscus indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Gainesville. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Gainesville and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Gainesville it frosts late in the year after February 15 be ready to protect your hardy hibiscus if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Gainesville

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Gainesville

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Gainesville.