One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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 opportunity to plant stevia in Ocala should be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Stevia

Frost tolerance for stevia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

It's probably not a good idea to plant stevia until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant stevia 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 stevia and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your stevia may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your stevia indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Ocala the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Ocala may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Ocala you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your stevia if you have 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.