When to Plant Kohlrabi in Chicago, 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 USDA zone info for Chicago can be read to estimate when you can plant kohlrabi.


Planting Calendar for Kohlrabi

Frost tolerance for kohlrabi: Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant: Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Kohlrabi do well in moderate cold which means that 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 kohlrabi
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant kohlrabi
Probably not a good time to plant kohlrabi

The earliest that you can plant kohlrabi 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 kohlrabi and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your kohlrabi may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your kohlrabi indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Chicago. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Chicago is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Chicago you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your kohlrabi if you have a surprise 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.