One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

In Rockford you can estimate when to plant geranium by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Geranium

Frost tolerance for geranium:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since geranium require warm weather it's important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant geranium in Rockford 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 geranium and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your geranium may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your geranium indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Rockford and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Rockford last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your geranium if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rockford

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 Rockford

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