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.

The first chance to plant garden mums in Ocala can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Garden Mums

Frost tolerance for garden mums:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since garden mums are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant garden mums in Ocala 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 garden mums and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your garden mums may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your garden mums indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Ocala is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Ocala it frosts late in the year after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your garden mums in the event of a late frost.

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.