When to Plant Tropical Water Plants in Peoria, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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.

In Peoria you can figure out when it's possible to plant tropical water plants by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

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

It's not a good idea to plant tropical water plants until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant tropical water plants
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant tropical water plants
Probably not a good time to plant tropical water plants

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants in Peoria 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 tropical water plants and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your tropical water plants may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your tropical water plants indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Peoria the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Peoria is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Peoria you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your tropical water plants in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Peoria

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 Peoria

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