Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant portulaca in Los Angeles should be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

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

It's probably a bad idea to plant portulaca until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Los Angeles is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant portulaca and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your portulaca may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your portulaca indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is January 31 in Los Angeles. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 35°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Los Angeles is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Los Angeles you get surprised by a frost after January 31 so make sure that you are ready to cover your portulaca in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Los Angeles

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	35°F
Highest Expected Low	40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 40°F.

Plants to Grow in Los Angeles

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Los Angeles.