Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to estimate when it's the best time to plant chicory by reviewing the USDA zone info for Grand Rapids.

Planting Calendar for Chicory

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

Since chicory do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant chicory in Grand Rapids 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 chicory and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chicory may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your chicory indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on May 15 in Grand Rapids. You should expect an average low temperature of -35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Grand Rapids may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Grand Rapids you get surprised by a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your chicory if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Grand Rapids

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-35°F
Highest Expected Low	-30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -30°F.

Plants to Grow in Grand Rapids

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Grand Rapids.