One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Mascoutah can be reviewed to estimate when it's possible to plant chives.

Planting Calendar for Chives

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

Since chives do well in cold you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant chives in Mascoutah 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 chives and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chives may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your chives indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Mascoutah the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Mascoutah and it is different every year. Half of the time in Mascoutah last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your chives in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Mascoutah

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Mascoutah

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