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.

A way of getting a good idea when it's possible to plant romanesco is to look at the USDA zone info for Downers Grove.

Planting Calendar for Romanesco

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

Romanesco are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant romanesco in Downers Grove 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 romanesco and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your romanesco may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your romanesco indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Downers Grove. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Downers Grove and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Downers Grove it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to cover your romanesco if you have a late frost.

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.