One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

The USDA zone info for Tampa can be read to estimate when to plant purple rock cress.

Planting Calendar for Purple Rock Cress

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

Purple Rock Cress do well in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them much earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant purple rock cress 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 purple rock cress and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your purple rock cress may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your purple rock cress 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.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is 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 it frosts late in the year after February 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your purple rock cress if you have 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.