One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant impatiens in Des Plaines should be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Impatiens

Frost tolerance for impatiens:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Impatiens do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you need to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant impatiens in Des Plaines 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 impatiens and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your impatiens may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your impatiens indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Des Plaines the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Des Plaines is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Des Plaines you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your impatiens in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Des Plaines

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°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 -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Des Plaines

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Des Plaines.