When to Plant Hardy Hibiscus in Lakeland, FL

One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your 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.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Lakeland you should be able to estimate when it's the best time 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.

Hardy Hibiscus do well in cold which tells us that you can get them planted much earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant hardy hibiscus in Lakeland 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 Lakeland. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lakeland is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Lakeland there is a last frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your hardy hibiscus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lakeland

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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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 Lakeland

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