One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of estimating when it's the best time to plant nierembergia is to look at the USDA zone info for Des Plaines.

Planting Calendar for Nierembergia

Frost tolerance for nierembergia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

It's probably a bad idea to plant nierembergia until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant nierembergia in Des Plaines 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 nierembergia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your nierembergia may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your nierembergia indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Des Plaines. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Des Plaines is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Des Plaines there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your nierembergia in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.