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.

The USDA zone info for Normal can be used to figure out when you can plant achimenes.

Planting Calendar for Achimenes

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

You really shouldn't plant achimenes until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant achimenes in Normal 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 achimenes and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your achimenes may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your achimenes indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Normal and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Normal it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your achimenes if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Normal

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 Normal

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