One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can estimate when it's the best time to plant trailing portulaca in Ridgecrest by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Trailing Portulaca

Frost tolerance for trailing portulaca:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since trailing portulaca require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant trailing portulaca in Ridgecrest 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 trailing portulaca and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your trailing portulaca may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your trailing portulaca indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Ridgecrest. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Ridgecrest and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Ridgecrest you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so always be ready to protect your trailing portulaca if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ridgecrest

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°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 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Ridgecrest

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