When to Plant Snap beans in Dekalb, IL

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Dekalb you can figure out when to plant snap beans by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Snap beans

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

Since snap beans are not cold tolerant it's necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant snap beans 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 snap beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your snap beans may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your snap beans indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Dekalb the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Dekalb is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Dekalb it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your snap beans in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.