One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

In Elk Grove Village you can determine when you can plant monarda by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Monarda

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

You can plant monarda just a tiny bit earlier in the year because they do ok in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant monarda in Elk Grove Village 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 monarda and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your monarda may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your monarda indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Elk Grove Village. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Elk Grove Village is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Elk Grove Village you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your monarda in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Elk Grove Village

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 Elk Grove Village

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