The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant tropical water plants in Wilmington can be estimated by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

Frost tolerance for tropical water plants:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since tropical water plants do not do well in cold weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants in Wilmington 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 tropical water plants and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your tropical water plants may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your tropical water plants indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Wilmington. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Wilmington is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Wilmington you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your tropical water plants if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wilmington

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°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 -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Wilmington

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