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.

One way of determining when it's possible to plant catharanthus is to examine the USDA zone info for New Port Richey.

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

Frost tolerance for catharanthus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Catharanthus are not cold tolerant which means that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in New Port Richey is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

In New Port Richey the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for New Port Richey is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in New Port Richey you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your catharanthus if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for New Port Richey

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 New Port Richey

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Port Richey.