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.

One way of estimating when to plant dallas fern is to use the USDA zone info for Manteno.

Planting Calendar for Dallas Fern

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

It's probably a bad idea to plant dallas fern until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant dallas fern in Manteno 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 dallas fern and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your dallas fern may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your dallas fern indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Manteno is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Manteno last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your dallas fern in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.