One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 Detroit it's a good idea to estimate when it's the best time to plant portulaca.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

Frost tolerance for portulaca:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

It's probably a bad idea to plant portulaca until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Detroit 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 grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your portulaca indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Detroit the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Detroit and it is different every year. Half of the time in Detroit last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to cover your portulaca in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Detroit

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Detroit

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