When to Plant Sweet Potatos in Zone 12a

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.

The best time to plant sweet potatos in Zone 12a can be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Sweet Potatos

Frost tolerance for sweet potatos: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

It's a bad idea to plant sweet potatos until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant sweet potatos
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant sweet potatos
Probably not a good time to plant sweet potatos

The earliest that you can plant sweet potatos in Zone 12a is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant sweet potatos and expect a good harvest is probably November. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your sweet potatos may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your sweet potatos indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 12a it never frosts. You can expect an average low temperature of 50°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 12a may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since it never frosts in Zone 12a you do not have to be ready to cover your sweet potatos if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 12a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 12a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)Never
Average Date of First Frost (fall)Never
Lowest Expected Low50°F
Highest Expected Low55°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 50°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 55°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 12a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 12a.