When to Plant Chamomile in River Forest, IL

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

By using the USDA zone info for River Forest it's a good idea to figure out when to plant chamomile.


Planting Calendar for Chamomile

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

Since chamomile are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant chamomile in River Forest 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 chamomile and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your chamomile may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your chamomile indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in River Forest. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for River Forest is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in River Forest you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your chamomile in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for River Forest

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-10°F
Highest Expected Low-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in River Forest

You may be interested in your other planting guides for River Forest.