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frostdate name logo in white

When to Plant Sweet Williams in Lake Bluff, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out 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.

A way of estimating when you can plant sweet williams is to check out the USDA zone info for Lake Bluff.


Planting Calendar for Sweet Williams

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

Sweet Williams do ok in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant sweet williams in Lake Bluff 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 sweet williams and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your sweet williams may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your sweet williams 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.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Lake Bluff and it 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 sweet williams in the event of a 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.