One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

A way of making a decision about when it's possible to plant tropical water plants is to look at the USDA zone info for The Dalles.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

Frost tolerance for tropical water plants:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Tropical Water Plants require warm weather which means that it is important to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants in The Dalles 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. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tropical water plants may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your tropical water plants indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in The Dalles. You can expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for The Dalles may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in The Dalles last frost occurs after March 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your tropical water plants if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for The Dalles

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 The Dalles

You may be interested in your other planting guides for The Dalles.