When to Plant Hemerocallis in Des Plaines, 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.

A common way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant hemerocallis is to consult the USDA zone info for Des Plaines.


Planting Calendar for Hemerocallis

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

Since hemerocallis are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant hemerocallis in Des Plaines 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 hemerocallis and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your hemerocallis may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your hemerocallis indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Des Plaines. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Des Plaines is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Des Plaines last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your hemerocallis if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Des Plaines

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 Des Plaines

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Des Plaines.