When to Plant Purslane in Tampa, FL

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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Tampa you will be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant purslane.


Planting Calendar for Purslane

Frost tolerance for purslane: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Since purslane are barely cold tolerant you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant purslane in Tampa is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant purslane and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your purslane may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your purslane indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Tampa. You can expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Tampa is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Tampa there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to protect your purslane if you have 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.