The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can figure out when to plant portulaca in Niles by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

Frost tolerance for portulaca:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since portulaca do not do well in cold weather it's important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Niles is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant portulaca and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your portulaca may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your portulaca indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Niles. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Niles is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Niles you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your portulaca in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Niles

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Niles

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Niles.