When to Plant Hollyhocks in Pittsfield, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant hollyhocks in Pittsfield should be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Hollyhocks

Frost tolerance for hollyhocks: Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant: Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Hollyhocks tend to make it in a little bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant hollyhocks in Pittsfield is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant hollyhocks and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your hollyhocks may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your hollyhocks indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Pittsfield. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Pittsfield is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Pittsfield there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your hollyhocks in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Pittsfield

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 Pittsfield

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