One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

The first chance to plant astilbe in East Chicago should be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Astilbe

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

Astilbe tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for East Chicago is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in East Chicago there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your astilbe if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for East Chicago

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 East Chicago

You may be interested in your other planting guides for East Chicago.