When to Plant Chrysanthemum in Evanston, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Evanston you will be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant chrysanthemum.


Planting Calendar for Chrysanthemum

Frost tolerance for chrysanthemum: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since chrysanthemum are not cold tolerant it's necessary to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant chrysanthemum
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant chrysanthemum
Probably not a good time to plant chrysanthemum

The earliest that you can plant chrysanthemum in Evanston 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 chrysanthemum and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your chrysanthemum may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your chrysanthemum indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Evanston the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Evanston is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Evanston it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your chrysanthemum if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Evanston

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 Evanston

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