One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

One way of determining when it's the best time to plant portulaca is to examine the USDA zone info for Lumberton.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

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

You can not plant portulaca until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Lumberton 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. If you wait any later than that and your portulaca may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your portulaca indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Lumberton. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Lumberton and it is different every year. Half of the time in Lumberton it frosts late in the year after March 15 so always be ready to protect your portulaca in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lumberton

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Lumberton

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