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.

You can determine when it's a good idea to plant copperleaf in North Chicago by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Copperleaf

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

Since copperleaf require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant copperleaf in North Chicago 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 copperleaf and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your copperleaf may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your copperleaf indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in North Chicago. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for North Chicago may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in North Chicago you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your copperleaf if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for North Chicago

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 North Chicago

You may be interested in your other planting guides for North Chicago.