When to Plant Salvia in Aurora, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant salvia is to refer to the USDA zone info for Aurora.


Planting Calendar for Salvia

Frost tolerance for salvia: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Salvia do ok in mild cold which means that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant salvia
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant salvia
Probably not a good time to plant salvia

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

The last month that you can plant salvia and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your salvia may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your salvia indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Aurora. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Aurora and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Aurora it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your salvia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Aurora

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 Aurora

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