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

One way of estimating when it's the best time to plant beets is to look at the USDA zone info for Tampa.

Planting Calendar for Beets

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

You can plant beets a little earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant beets 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 beets and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your beets may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your beets indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Tampa the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Tampa is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Tampa last frost occurs after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your beets in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.