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.

In New Lenox you can determine when it's a good idea to plant bell peppers by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Bell Peppers

Frost tolerance for bell peppers:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You can not plant bell peppers until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant bell peppers in New Lenox is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant bell peppers and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your bell peppers may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your bell peppers indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in New Lenox. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember 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 New Lenox and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in New Lenox you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your bell peppers in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for New Lenox

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 New Lenox

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Lenox.