When to Plant Spearmint in Lake Zurich, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 earliest that you can plant spearmint in Lake Zurich can be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Spearmint

Frost tolerance for spearmint: Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant: Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant spearmint quite a bit earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant spearmint 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 spearmint and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your spearmint may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your spearmint indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Lake Zurich and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Lake Zurich you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your spearmint 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.