One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant elephant ears in Eldridge should be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

Frost tolerance for elephant ears:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You should not plant elephant ears until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Eldridge 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 elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your elephant ears may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your elephant ears indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Eldridge and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Eldridge last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your elephant ears if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Eldridge

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 Eldridge

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