Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Pedalai (Artocarpus sericicarpus)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Pedalai, Hairy-fruited Breadfruit.

More about pedalai

About Pedalai

Artocarpus sericicarpus · also called Pedalai, Hairy-fruited Breadfruit · tropical

Pedalai is a rare Bornean Artocarpus species producing large, hairy-skinned fruits with sweet, yellow-orange arils surrounding seeds, eaten fresh or cooked across Borneo and the Philippines. Less well-known than breadfruit or jackfruit, it is a collector's tree grown by tropical fruit enthusiasts. It requires a consistently hot, humid, lowland tropical climate and deep, fertile, well-drained soil.

Cold limit: USDA 12 · RHS H1a (22–38°C)

Watch for — Cold sensitivity and chilling injury: Even brief exposure to temperatures below 15°C (59°F) causes leaf bronzing, defoliation, and tip dieback. It is strictly a lowland equatorial species with virtually no cold tolerance. In subtropical climates, grow only under heated glass with a minimum night temperature of 18°C (64°F).

What pedalai's hardiness rating actually means

Pedalai is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1a means: Tropical — needs a heated room or greenhouse; no frost tolerance whatsoever. On the US scale that maps to USDA 12 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly above about 15 °C (warm, never cold). Pedalai has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for pedalai as it gets too cold:

Below about above about 15 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can pedalai go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above above 15 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when pedalai can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1a figure above.

Pedalai hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is pedalai cold hardy?

Pedalai is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Pedalai can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 12); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature pedalai can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly above about 15 °C (warm, never cold). Pedalai has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

What hardiness zone is pedalai?

Pedalai is rated USDA 12 and RHS H1a — Tropical — needs a heated room or greenhouse; no frost tolerance whatsoever.

Can pedalai survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above above 15 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to pedalai below its minimum temperature?

Below about above about 15 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.