One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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 first chance to plant lettuce in Manteno should be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lettuce

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

Since lettuce do well in moderate cold you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant lettuce 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 lettuce and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lettuce may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your lettuce indoors.

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 will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Manteno it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to protect your lettuce in the event of 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.