When to Plant Ornamental Grasses in Carbondale, IL

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Carbondale you can estimate when it's the best time to plant ornamental grasses by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

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

Since ornamental grasses are barely cold tolerant you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses in Carbondale 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 ornamental grasses and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your ornamental grasses may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your ornamental grasses indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Carbondale the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Carbondale is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Carbondale you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your ornamental grasses if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Carbondale

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-5°F
Highest Expected Low0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Carbondale

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