One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

One way of making a decision about when to plant asparagus is to check out the USDA zone info for Tampa.

Planting Calendar for Asparagus

Frost tolerance for asparagus:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant asparagus much earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant asparagus in Tampa 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 asparagus and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your asparagus may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your asparagus indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Tampa and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Tampa there is a last frost after February 15 so always be ready to cover your asparagus if you have 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.