One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

The USDA zone info for Elgin should be reviewed to determine when to plant pincushion flower.

Planting Calendar for Pincushion Flower

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

You can plant pincushion flower a little bit earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant pincushion flower in Elgin 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 pincushion flower and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your pincushion flower may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your pincushion flower indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Elgin. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Elgin is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Elgin last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to cover your pincushion flower if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Elgin

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°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 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Elgin

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