One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

A common way of determining when it's the best time to plant begonias is to check out the USDA zone info for Vernon Hills.

Planting Calendar for Begonias

Frost tolerance for begonias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Begonias require warm weather which tells us that you must wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant begonias in Vernon Hills 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 begonias and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your begonias may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your begonias indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Vernon Hills. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Vernon Hills is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Vernon Hills you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your begonias if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Vernon Hills

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 Vernon Hills

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Vernon Hills.