When to Plant Tithonia in Harvard, IL

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Harvard you should be able to estimate when to plant tithonia.


Planting Calendar for Tithonia

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

Since tithonia do not do well in cold weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant tithonia in Harvard 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 tithonia and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tithonia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your tithonia indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Harvard is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Harvard you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your tithonia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Harvard

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 Harvard

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