One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

It's possible to figure out when you can plant hosta by reviewing the USDA zone info for East Chicago.

Planting Calendar for Hosta

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

Hosta are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant hosta in East Chicago 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 hosta and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your hosta may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your hosta indoors.

Last Frost Date

In East Chicago the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for East Chicago is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in East Chicago you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your hosta if you have a late frost.

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.