When to Plant Bellis in Portland, ME

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. 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 Portland can be reffered to in order to determine when it's a good idea to plant bellis.


Planting Calendar for Bellis

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

You can plant bellis a bit earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant bellis in Portland 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 bellis and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your bellis may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your bellis indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Portland is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Portland there is a last frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your bellis if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Portland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Portland

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