The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant elephant ears in Portales should be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

Frost tolerance for elephant ears:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since elephant ears do not do well in cold weather you must wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Portales 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 elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your elephant ears may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your elephant ears indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Portales. You should expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Portales is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Portales you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your elephant ears in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Portales

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

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

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

Plants to Grow in Portales

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