When to Plant Dahlia in Macomb, IL

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden 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 figuring out when it's possible to plant dahlia is to check out the USDA zone info for Macomb.


Planting Calendar for Dahlia

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

Dahlia are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Macomb 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 dahlia and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your dahlia may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your dahlia 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 Macomb. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Macomb is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Macomb you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your dahlia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Macomb

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 Macomb

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Macomb.