When to Plant Maltese Cross in Wood Dale, IL

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 getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant maltese cross is to use the USDA zone info for Wood Dale.


Planting Calendar for Maltese Cross

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

Maltese Cross are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them a little bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant maltese cross
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant maltese cross
Probably not a good time to plant maltese cross

The earliest that you can plant maltese cross in Wood Dale 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 maltese cross and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your maltese cross may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your maltese cross indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Wood Dale. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Wood Dale may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Wood Dale you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your maltese cross if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wood Dale

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 Wood Dale

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Wood Dale.