When to Plant Forget-Me-Not in Chicago, 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.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Chicago it's possible to determine when you can plant forget-me-not.


Planting Calendar for Forget-Me-Not

Frost tolerance for forget-me-not: Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant: Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since forget-me-not are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant forget-me-not
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant forget-me-not
Probably not a good time to plant forget-me-not

The earliest that you can plant forget-me-not 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 forget-me-not and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your forget-me-not may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your forget-me-not indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Chicago the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chicago and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Chicago you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your forget-me-not 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.