When to Plant Squash in Blue Island, 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.

By using the USDA zone info for Blue Island it's a good idea to determine when you can plant squash.


Planting Calendar for Squash

Frost tolerance for squash: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

You should not plant squash until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant squash in Blue Island 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 squash and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your squash may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your squash indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Blue Island. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Blue Island is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Blue Island last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to protect your squash if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Blue Island

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-10°F
Highest Expected Low-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Blue Island

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Blue Island.