One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Des Plaines can be looked at to figure out when it's a good idea to plant purslane.

Planting Calendar for Purslane

Frost tolerance for purslane:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant purslane slightly earlier in the year because they do ok in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant purslane in Des Plaines is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant purslane and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your purslane may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your purslane indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Des Plaines the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Des Plaines is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Des Plaines it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your purslane in the event of a 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.