The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Wilmette you can determine when it's possible to plant scarlet runner beans by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Scarlet Runner Beans

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

Since scarlet runner beans do not do well in cold weather you need to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant scarlet runner beans in Wilmette 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 scarlet runner beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your scarlet runner beans may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your scarlet runner beans indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on 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 just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Wilmette there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your scarlet runner beans in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.