When to Plant Chicory in Itasca, 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.

The USDA zone info for Itasca should be reviewed to estimate when to plant chicory.


Planting Calendar for Chicory

Frost tolerance for chicory: Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant: Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

You can plant chicory a little bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant chicory in Itasca is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant chicory and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your chicory may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your chicory indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Itasca the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Itasca may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Itasca you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your chicory in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Itasca

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 Itasca

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