One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

It's possible to determine when it's a good idea to plant amaranthus by referring to the USDA zone info for Ocala.

Planting Calendar for Amaranthus

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

Amaranthus do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant amaranthus in Ocala 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 amaranthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your amaranthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your amaranthus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Ocala the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Ocala 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 Ocala last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to cover your amaranthus if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ocala

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Ocala

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