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 estimating when to plant portulaca is to examine the USDA zone info for Zone 7a.

Planting Calendar for Portulaca

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

Portulaca are not cold tolerant which means that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant portulaca in Zone 7a 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 portulaca and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your portulaca may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your portulaca indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Zone 7a. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 7a is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 7a last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your portulaca in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 7a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 7a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 7a.