One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

The USDA zone info for Minooka can be looked at to figure out when it's a good idea to plant anchusa.

Planting Calendar for Anchusa

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

Since anchusa are very cold tolerant you can plant them earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant anchusa in Minooka 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 anchusa and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your anchusa may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your anchusa indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Minooka. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Minooka is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Minooka you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your anchusa if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Minooka

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 Minooka

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