One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By checking out the USDA zone info for North Chicago it's a good idea to estimate when to plant oleander.

Planting Calendar for Oleander

Frost tolerance for oleander:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since oleander are not cold tolerant it's necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant oleander 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 oleander and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your oleander may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your oleander indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In North Chicago the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can 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 is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for North Chicago and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in North Chicago you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your oleander 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.