The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of estimating when it's possible to plant polygonums is to use the USDA zone info for South Milwaukee.

Planting Calendar for Polygonums

Frost tolerance for polygonums:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's a bad idea to plant polygonums until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant polygonums in South Milwaukee is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant polygonums and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your polygonums may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your polygonums indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in South Milwaukee. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for South Milwaukee and it is different every year. Half of the time in South Milwaukee there is a last frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your polygonums if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for South Milwaukee

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 South Milwaukee

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Milwaukee.