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

The first opportunity to plant dallas fern in Lake Bluff can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dallas Fern

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

It's a bad idea to plant dallas fern until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant dallas fern in Lake Bluff 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 dallas fern and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your dallas fern may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your dallas fern indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Lake Bluff 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.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Lake Bluff may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Lake Bluff you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your dallas fern if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Bluff

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 Lake Bluff

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Bluff.