Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's a good idea to plant stevia by looking at the USDA zone info for Steger.

Planting Calendar for Stevia

Frost tolerance for stevia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You can not plant stevia until after all chance of frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant stevia in Steger 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 stevia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your stevia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your stevia indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Steger. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to 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 can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Steger it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your stevia in the event of a late frost.

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.