The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant osteospermum in Rockford can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Osteospermum

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

Since osteospermum are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant osteospermum in Rockford 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 osteospermum and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your osteospermum may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your osteospermum indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Rockford. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Rockford is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Rockford there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your osteospermum in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.