One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. 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 radicchio in Chicago can be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Radicchio

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

You can plant radicchio a bit earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant radicchio 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 radicchio and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your radicchio may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your radicchio indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chicago and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Chicago it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to protect your radicchio in the event of 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.