One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Palatine you should be able to determine when to plant cerastium.

Planting Calendar for Cerastium

Frost tolerance for cerastium:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since cerastium do well in moderate cold you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant cerastium in Palatine is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant cerastium and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your cerastium may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your cerastium indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Palatine and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Palatine you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your cerastium if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Palatine

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 Palatine

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