When to Plant Pansies in Decatur, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate 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 best time to plant pansies in Decatur can be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Pansies

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

Pansies do ok in a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant pansies in Decatur 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 pansies and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your pansies may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your pansies indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Decatur. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Decatur is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Decatur you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your pansies 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.