When to Plant Dahlias in Carpentersville, 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.

The best time to plant dahlias in Carpentersville should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Dahlias

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

Since dahlias do not do well in cold weather you must wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Carpentersville 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Carpentersville may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Carpentersville there is a last frost after April 15 so always be ready to protect your dahlias in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Carpentersville

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 Carpentersville

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