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 using the USDA zone info for Algonquin it's a good idea to figure out when to plant violas.

Planting Calendar for Violas

Frost tolerance for violas:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since violas are very cold tolerant you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant violas in Algonquin 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 violas and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your violas may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your violas indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Algonquin the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Algonquin is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Algonquin you get a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your violas in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Algonquin

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 Algonquin

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