One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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 earliest that you can plant spearmint in Elgin can be estimated by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Spearmint

Frost tolerance for spearmint:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Spearmint are very cold tolerant which means that you can plant them much earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant spearmint 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 spearmint and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your spearmint may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your spearmint indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Elgin the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Elgin is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Elgin there is a last frost after March 15 be ready to protect your spearmint in the event of a surprise 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.