The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Steger it's possible to estimate when it's a good idea to plant leeks.

Planting Calendar for Leeks

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

Since leeks are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them much earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Steger. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Steger and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Steger there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your leeks if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Steger

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 Steger

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