One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant flowering kale in Evanston can be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Flowering Kale

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

You can plant flowering kale a little bit earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant flowering kale in Evanston 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 flowering kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your flowering kale may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your flowering kale indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Evanston the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Evanston and it is different every year. Half of the time in Evanston it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your flowering kale in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Evanston

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Evanston

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