Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Winnetka it's possible to figure out when it's the best time to plant runner beans.

Planting Calendar for Runner beans

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

You should not plant runner beans until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Winnetka. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Winnetka is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Winnetka it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your runner beans in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Winnetka

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 Winnetka

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