When to Plant Marigold in University Park, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can determine when it's the best time to plant marigold in University Park by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Marigold

Frost tolerance for marigold: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Marigold require warm weather which tells us that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant marigold in University Park 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 marigold and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your marigold may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your marigold indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in University Park. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for University Park is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in University Park you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your marigold if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for University Park

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low5°F
Highest Expected Low10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in University Park

You may be interested in your other planting guides for University Park.