Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You will be able to determine when it's a good idea to plant cosmos by referring to the USDA zone info for Highland Park.

Planting Calendar for Cosmos

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

Cosmos are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant cosmos in Highland Park 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 cosmos and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your cosmos may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your cosmos indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Highland Park the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Highland Park is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Highland Park you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your cosmos if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Highland Park

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Highland Park

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Highland Park.