When to Plant Portulaca in Coldwater, MI

One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Coldwater it's possible to determine when you can plant portulaca.


Planting Calendar for Portulaca

Frost tolerance for portulaca: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since portulaca require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant portulaca
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant portulaca
Probably not a good time to plant portulaca

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Coldwater is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant portulaca and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your portulaca may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your portulaca indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Coldwater. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Coldwater is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Coldwater last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your portulaca if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Coldwater

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-15°F
Highest Expected Low-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Coldwater

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