When to Plant Marigold in Orlando, FL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. 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 Orlando can be read to figure out when to plant marigold.


Planting Calendar for Marigold

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

Since marigold are not cold tolerant you must wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant marigold
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant marigold
Probably not a good time to plant marigold

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Orlando. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Orlando and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Orlando you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your marigold if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Orlando

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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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 Orlando

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