One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Punta Gorda it's a good idea to estimate when you can plant cigar plant.

Planting Calendar for Cigar Plant

Frost tolerance for cigar plant:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You can not plant cigar plant until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant cigar plant in Punta Gorda is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant cigar plant and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your cigar plant may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your cigar plant indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on January 31 in Punta Gorda. It might get as low as 30°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Punta Gorda may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Punta Gorda you get surprised by a frost after January 31 be ready to cover your cigar plant in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Punta Gorda

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Punta Gorda

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Punta Gorda.