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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Wilmette it's possible to determine when it's the best time to plant sanvitalia.

Planting Calendar for Sanvitalia

Frost tolerance for sanvitalia:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Since sanvitalia are barely cold tolerant you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant sanvitalia in Wilmette is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant sanvitalia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your sanvitalia may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your sanvitalia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Wilmette. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Wilmette is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Wilmette you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your sanvitalia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wilmette

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 Wilmette

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