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.

A common way of figuring out when you can plant coleus is to use the USDA zone info for Chicago Ridge.

Planting Calendar for Coleus

Frost tolerance for coleus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since coleus require warm weather it's important to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant coleus in Chicago Ridge 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 coleus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your coleus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your coleus indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Chicago Ridge. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Chicago Ridge is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Chicago Ridge it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your coleus in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chicago Ridge

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 Chicago Ridge

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Chicago Ridge.