One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The earliest that you can plant marigold in Downers Grove can be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Marigold

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

Since marigold 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 marigold in Downers Grove 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 marigold and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your marigold may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your marigold indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Downers Grove. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Downers Grove is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Downers Grove last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your marigold if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Downers Grove

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 Downers Grove

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Downers Grove.