One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 first opportunity to plant dusty miller in Elgin should be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dusty Miller

Frost tolerance for dusty miller:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since dusty miller are very cold tolerant you can plant them much earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant dusty miller in Elgin 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 dusty miller and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your dusty miller may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your dusty miller indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Elgin is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Elgin last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your dusty miller in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Elgin

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 Elgin

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Elgin.