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.

You should be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant snap beans by reviewing the USDA zone info for South Elgin.

Planting Calendar for Snap beans

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

Snap beans are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant snap beans in South Elgin 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 snap beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your snap beans may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your snap beans indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in South Elgin. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for South Elgin may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in South Elgin last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your snap beans if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for South Elgin

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 South Elgin

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Elgin.