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 USDA zone info for Manteno can be read to determine when to plant chinese chives.

Planting Calendar for Chinese chives

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

Chinese chives do ok in mild cold which tells us that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant chinese chives in Manteno 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 chinese chives and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your chinese chives may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your chinese chives indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Manteno may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Manteno you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your chinese chives if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Manteno

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 Manteno

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