Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Portsmouth you can determine when you can plant flowering kale by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Flowering Kale

Frost tolerance for flowering kale:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Flowering Kale are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can get them planted earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant flowering kale in Portsmouth is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant flowering kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your flowering kale may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your flowering kale indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Portsmouth. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Portsmouth is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Portsmouth last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to cover your flowering kale in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.