When to Plant Rock Cress in University Park, IL

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 a good idea to plant rock cress by checking out the USDA zone info for University Park.


Planting Calendar for Rock Cress

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

You can plant rock cress much earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

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

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

Last Frost Date

In University Park the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for University Park is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in University Park there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your rock cress in the event of a 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.