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

By checking out the USDA zone info for Chicago you will be able to estimate when to plant anchusa.

Planting Calendar for Anchusa

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

Since anchusa do well in cold you can plant them much earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant anchusa in Chicago 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 anchusa and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your anchusa may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your anchusa indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Chicago. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Chicago may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Chicago you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your anchusa if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chicago

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

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