When to Plant Alternanthera in Pontiac, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

The USDA zone info for Pontiac should be reffered to in order to estimate when you can plant alternanthera.


Planting Calendar for Alternanthera

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

You really shouldn't plant alternanthera until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

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

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Pontiac and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Pontiac there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your alternanthera if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Pontiac

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 Pontiac

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