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

One way of determining when it's the best time to plant portulaca is to refer to the USDA zone info for Childress.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

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

It's a bad idea to plant portulaca until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

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

Last Frost Date

In Childress the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Childress is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Childress there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your portulaca if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Childress

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Childress

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