One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 USDA zone info for Tampa can be reffered to in order to estimate when it's a good idea to plant alternaria.

Planting Calendar for Alternaria

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

Since alternaria are not cold tolerant it is important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant alternaria in Tampa 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 alternaria and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your alternaria may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your alternaria indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Tampa. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Tampa may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Tampa last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to cover your alternaria in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Tampa

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 Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°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 Tampa

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