One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

You should be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant nigella by checking out the USDA zone info for Batavia.

Planting Calendar for Nigella

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

Nigella are very cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them a quite a bit earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Batavia is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Batavia you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your nigella in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Batavia

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 Batavia

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