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

A common way of making a decision about when you can plant basil is to check out the USDA zone info for Hinsdale.

Planting Calendar for Basil

Frost tolerance for basil:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Basil are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is important to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant basil in Hinsdale 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your basil may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your basil indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Hinsdale and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Hinsdale you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your basil if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hinsdale

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 Hinsdale

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