One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Ocala should be looked at to figure out when it's possible to plant red hot pokers.

Planting Calendar for Red Hot Pokers

Frost tolerance for red hot pokers:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Red Hot Pokers can survive in quite a bit of cold which means that you can plant them quite a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant red hot pokers 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 red hot pokers and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your red hot pokers may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your red hot pokers indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Ocala. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Ocala is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Ocala last frost occurs after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your red hot pokers in the event of a surprise 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.