When to Plant Jerusalem artichokes in Lake Zurich, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

A common way of figuring out when it's a good idea to plant jerusalem artichokes is to refer to the USDA zone info for Lake Zurich.


Planting Calendar for Jerusalem artichokes

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

Jerusalem artichokes can survive in a little bit of cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant jerusalem artichokes in Lake Zurich 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 jerusalem artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your jerusalem artichokes may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your jerusalem artichokes indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Lake Zurich. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Lake Zurich is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Lake Zurich it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your jerusalem artichokes if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Zurich

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 Zurich

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