One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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 banana in Lake Forest can be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Banana

Frost tolerance for banana:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since banana require warm weather you must wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant banana in Lake Forest 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 banana and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your banana may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your banana indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Lake Forest. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lake Forest is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Lake Forest there is a last frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your banana in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Forest

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 Forest

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