The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of figuring out when to plant calliopsis is to look at the USDA zone info for Lake Forest.

Planting Calendar for Calliopsis

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

Calliopsis are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is important to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant calliopsis 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 calliopsis and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your calliopsis may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your calliopsis indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

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.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lake Forest is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Lake Forest there is a last frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your calliopsis if you have one of those late frosts.

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.