One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for South Portland you will be able to figure out when to plant bloodleaf.

Planting Calendar for Bloodleaf

Frost tolerance for bloodleaf:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since bloodleaf require warm weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant bloodleaf in South Portland 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 bloodleaf and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your bloodleaf may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your bloodleaf indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in South Portland. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for South Portland is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in South Portland you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your bloodleaf if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for South 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 South Portland

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