One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

A common way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant anise is to refer to the USDA zone info for Mchenry.

Planting Calendar for Anise

Frost tolerance for anise:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Anise are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant anise in Mchenry is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant anise and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your anise may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your anise indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Mchenry. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Mchenry may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Mchenry you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your anise if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mchenry

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 Mchenry

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