One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

The earliest that you can plant maltese cross in Rantoul should be determined by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Maltese Cross

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

You can plant maltese cross a little earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant maltese cross in Rantoul 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 maltese cross and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your maltese cross may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your maltese cross indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Rantoul. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Rantoul is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Rantoul it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your maltese cross in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rantoul

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 Rantoul

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