When to Plant Napa Valley Fern in Niles, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Niles it's possible to figure out when it's a good idea to plant napa valley fern.


Planting Calendar for Napa Valley Fern

Frost tolerance for napa valley fern: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since napa valley fern do not do well in cold weather you must wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant napa valley fern
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant napa valley fern
Probably not a good time to plant napa valley fern

The earliest that you can plant napa valley fern in Niles 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 napa valley fern and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your napa valley fern may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your napa valley fern indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Niles. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Niles is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Niles there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your napa valley fern in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Niles

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

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

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

Plants to Grow in Niles

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