When to Plant Carnation in Riverside, IL

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate 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 carnation in Riverside can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Carnation

Frost tolerance for carnation: Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant: Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant carnation a lot earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant carnation in Riverside 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 carnation and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your carnation may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your carnation indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Riverside the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Riverside is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Riverside there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your carnation if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Riverside

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 Riverside

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