When to Plant Delphinium in Pontiac, IL

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant delphinium in Pontiac should be estimated by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Delphinium

Frost tolerance for delphinium: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant delphinium a bit earlier in the year because they do ok in moderate cold.

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

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

The last month that you can plant delphinium and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your delphinium may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your delphinium indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Pontiac. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Pontiac and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Pontiac last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your delphinium in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.