One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for University Place you will be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant tropical water plants.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

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

It's a bad idea to plant tropical water plants until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants in University Place 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 really do well. If you are starting your tropical water plants indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for University Place is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in University Place last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to cover your tropical water plants if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for University Place

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in University Place

You may be interested in your other planting guides for University Place.