One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for New Smyrna Beach you should be able to determine when it's a good idea to plant watercress.

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.

Watercress do ok in moderate cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant watercress in New Smyrna Beach 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. Any later than that and your watercress may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your watercress indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In New Smyrna Beach the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for New Smyrna Beach may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in New Smyrna Beach you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your watercress in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for New Smyrna Beach

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 Smyrna Beach

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Smyrna Beach.