One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of estimating when to plant elephant ears is to look at the USDA zone info for Hickory Hills.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

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

Since elephant ears require warm weather you need to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Hickory Hills 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 elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your elephant ears may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your elephant ears indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Hickory Hills the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Hickory Hills is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Hickory Hills you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your elephant ears in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hickory Hills

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 Hickory Hills

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Hickory Hills.