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.

A way of figuring out when it's a good idea to plant eggplants is to use the USDA zone info for Portsmouth.

Planting Calendar for Eggplants

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

Since eggplants do not do well in cold weather it's important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant eggplants in Portsmouth 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 eggplants and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your eggplants may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your eggplants indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Portsmouth. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Portsmouth is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Portsmouth it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to cover your eggplants if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Portsmouth

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 Portsmouth

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