One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

One way of determining when you can plant elephant ears is to refer to the USDA zone info for Willowbrook.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

Frost tolerance for elephant ears:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

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

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Willowbrook 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 elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your elephant ears may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your elephant ears indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Willowbrook. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Willowbrook may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Willowbrook there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your elephant ears in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Willowbrook

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 Willowbrook

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Willowbrook.