When to Plant Squash in Oak Park, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for Oak Park you should be able to determine when to plant squash.

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Planting Calendar for Squash

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

You should not plant squash until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant squash
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant squash
Probably not a good time to plant squash

The earliest that you can plant squash in Oak Park 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 squash and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your squash may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your squash indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Oak Park the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Oak Park and it is different every year. Half of the time in Oak Park it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your squash if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Oak Park

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 Oak Park

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Oak Park.