One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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 first chance to plant tall phlox in Sanibel can be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tall Phlox

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

Since tall phlox do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant tall phlox in Sanibel 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 tall phlox and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your tall phlox may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your tall phlox indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Sanibel the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You should expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Sanibel is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Sanibel it frosts late in the year after January 31 be ready to cover your tall phlox in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Sanibel

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 Sanibel

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