The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. 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 Portales it's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant scarlet pimpernels.

Planting Calendar for Scarlet Pimpernels

Frost tolerance for scarlet pimpernels:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Scarlet Pimpernels are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant scarlet pimpernels in Portales is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant scarlet pimpernels and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your scarlet pimpernels may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your scarlet pimpernels indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Portales. You can expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Portales may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Portales it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your scarlet pimpernels in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.