When to Plant Hosta in Mokena, IL

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.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's possible to plant hosta by reviewing the USDA zone info for Mokena.


Planting Calendar for Hosta

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

Since hosta 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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant hosta
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant hosta
Probably not a good time to plant hosta

The earliest that you can plant hosta in Mokena 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 hosta and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your hosta may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your hosta indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Mokena is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Mokena you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your hosta in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mokena

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 Mokena

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