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.

A common way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant monkey flower is to refer to the USDA zone info for Northbrook.

Planting Calendar for Monkey Flower

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

Since monkey flower do not do well in cold weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant monkey flower in Northbrook 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 monkey flower and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your monkey flower may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your monkey flower indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Northbrook the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Northbrook is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Northbrook there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your monkey flower in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Northbrook

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 Northbrook

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