Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In East Peoria you can determine when it's the best time to plant lemon balm by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lemon balm

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

You can plant lemon balm slightly earlier in the year because they are barely cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant lemon balm in East Peoria 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 lemon balm and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lemon balm may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your lemon balm indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in East Peoria. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for East Peoria may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in East Peoria there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your lemon balm in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for East Peoria

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 East Peoria

You may be interested in your other planting guides for East Peoria.