One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

In Portland you can determine when to plant firebush by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Firebush

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

Firebush require warm weather which means that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant firebush in Portland 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 firebush and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your firebush may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your firebush indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Portland. You can expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Portland is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Portland there is a last frost after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your firebush in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Portland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Portland

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