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 determining when it's the best time to plant eggplants is to consult the USDA zone info for Hoffman Estates.

Planting Calendar for Eggplants

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

You really shouldn't plant eggplants until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant eggplants in Hoffman Estates 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 eggplants and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your eggplants may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your eggplants indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Hoffman Estates the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Hoffman Estates is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Hoffman Estates there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your eggplants if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Hoffman Estates

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 Hoffman Estates

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Hoffman Estates.