Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

One way of estimating when it's the best time to plant watercress is to use the USDA zone info for Lake Wales.

Planting Calendar for Watercress

Frost tolerance for watercress:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant watercress a bit earlier in the year because they do ok in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant watercress in Lake Wales 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 watercress and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your watercress may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your watercress indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Lake Wales. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Lake Wales may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Lake Wales you get a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your watercress in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Wales

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Lake Wales

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Wales.