When to Plant Pentas in Genoa, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can figure out when it's a good idea to plant pentas in Genoa by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Pentas

Frost tolerance for pentas: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost has passed.

Since pentas are not cold tolerant you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant pentas in Genoa 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 pentas and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pentas may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your pentas indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Genoa. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Genoa is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Genoa last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your pentas in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Genoa

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 Genoa

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