When to Plant Thyme in Carbondale, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Carbondale should be looked at to determine when you can plant thyme.


Planting Calendar for Thyme

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

Thyme tend to make it in cold weather which means that you can plant them much earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant thyme in Carbondale 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 thyme and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your thyme may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your thyme indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Carbondale. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Carbondale may not be accurate from year to year 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 always be ready to cover your thyme in the event of 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.