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

The USDA zone info for Gillette should be looked at to figure out when it's the best time to plant portulaca.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

Frost tolerance for portulaca:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

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

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Gillette is May. However, you really should wait until June 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. Starting your portulaca indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Gillette. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Gillette may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Gillette you get a frost after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your portulaca if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Gillette

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°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 -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Gillette

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