When to Plant Pampas Grass in Tampa, FL

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Tampa should be read to estimate when it's possible to plant pampas grass.


Planting Calendar for Pampas Grass

Frost tolerance for pampas grass: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

Pampas Grass require warm weather which tells us that it's important to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant pampas grass
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant pampas grass
Probably not a good time to plant pampas grass

The earliest that you can plant pampas grass 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 pampas grass and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pampas grass may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your pampas grass indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Tampa and it is different every year. Half of the time in Tampa you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your pampas grass in the event of a 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 Low25°F
Highest Expected Low30°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.