When to Plant Tagetes in University Park, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

By using the USDA zone info for University Park you should be able to determine when you can plant tagetes.


Planting Calendar for Tagetes

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

You really shouldn't plant tagetes until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant tagetes 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 tagetes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tagetes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your tagetes indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last 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 may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in University Park there is a last frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your tagetes if you have one of those late frosts.

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.