When to Plant Brussels Sprouts in Winthrop Harbor, IL

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 using the USDA zone info for Winthrop Harbor you should be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant brussels sprouts.


Planting Calendar for Brussels Sprouts

Frost tolerance for brussels sprouts: Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant: Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since brussels sprouts are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant brussels sprouts
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant brussels sprouts
Probably not a good time to plant brussels sprouts

The earliest that you can plant brussels sprouts in Winthrop Harbor is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant brussels sprouts and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your brussels sprouts may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your brussels sprouts indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Winthrop Harbor the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Winthrop Harbor is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Winthrop Harbor it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your brussels sprouts if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Winthrop Harbor

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 Winthrop Harbor

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Winthrop Harbor.