The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of making a decision about when it's the best time to plant flowering maple is to look at the USDA zone info for Rockford.

Planting Calendar for Flowering Maple

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

Since flowering maple require warm weather you must wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant flowering maple in Rockford 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 flowering maple and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your flowering maple may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your flowering maple indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Rockford. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

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 Rockford and it is different every year. Half of the time in Rockford you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your flowering maple if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rockford

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 Rockford

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