Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant lisianthus in Champaign should be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lisianthus

Frost tolerance for lisianthus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

It's a bad idea to plant lisianthus until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant lisianthus in Champaign 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 lisianthus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lisianthus may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your lisianthus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Champaign the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Champaign is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Champaign you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your lisianthus in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Champaign

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 Champaign

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