One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

In Dekalb you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant neeps by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Neeps

Frost tolerance for neeps:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since neeps are not cold tolerant it is necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant neeps in Dekalb 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 neeps and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your neeps may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your neeps indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Dekalb the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during 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 Dekalb and it is different every year. Half of the time in Dekalb you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your neeps in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dekalb

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 Dekalb

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