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

It's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant zinnia by checking out the USDA zone info for Evanston.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

You really shouldn't plant zinnia until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Evanston 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your zinnia indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Evanston. You should expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Evanston is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Evanston you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your zinnia 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.