When to Plant Banana in Decatur, 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 earliest that you can plant banana in Decatur should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Banana

Frost tolerance for banana: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

You can not plant banana until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant banana
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant banana
Probably not a good time to plant banana

The earliest that you can plant banana in Decatur 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 banana and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your banana may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your banana indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Decatur is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Decatur it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your banana in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Decatur

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-15°F
Highest Expected Low-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Decatur

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