The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. 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 getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant tagetes is to refer to the USDA zone info for Portland.

Planting Calendar for Tagetes

Frost tolerance for tagetes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since tagetes do not do well in cold weather it is important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tagetes in Portland 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 tagetes and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your tagetes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your tagetes indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on February 15 in Portland. You can expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Portland is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Portland you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your tagetes if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Portland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Portland

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