When to plant in Flora, IL
Planting dates worked out from Flora's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.
Safe to plant out
Apr 19
1 year in 10 has a later frost
Average last frost
Apr 9
about a 50% chance of a later one
Average first fall frost
Oct 23
1 year in 10 by Oct 7
Frost-free days
196
median, 1991–2020
Station used: Flora · 1.1 km away · station 147 m, town 150 m. How we match towns to stations
This season
Plan your garden.
Planting dates for common crops
| Crop | Start indoors | Plant out or sow | Harvest from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato | Feb 22 – Mar 8 | Apr 19 – May 3 | Jun 13 |
| Sweet pepper | Feb 8 – Feb 22 | Apr 19 – May 3 | Jun 18 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Feb 7 – Feb 14 | Mar 14 – Mar 28 | Apr 23 |
| Peas | — | Mar 14 – Apr 11 | May 8 |
| Bush beans | — | Apr 12 – May 3 | Jun 1 |
| Carrot | — | Mar 21 – May 2 | May 20 |
| Beet | — | Mar 21 – May 2 | May 10 |
| Potato | — | Mar 21 – Apr 11 | May 30 |
| Kale | Feb 7 – Feb 21 | Mar 21 – Apr 4 | May 3 |
| Broccoli | Jan 31 – Feb 14 | Mar 14 – Apr 4 | May 13 |
| Cucumber | Mar 22 – Mar 29 | Apr 19 – May 3 | Jun 8 |
| Summer squash and zucchini | Mar 22 – Mar 29 | Apr 19 – May 3 | Jun 3 |
| Winter squash | Mar 22 – Mar 29 | Apr 19 – May 3 | Jul 8 |
| Sweet corn | — | Apr 12 – May 3 | Jun 11 |
| Onion (from sets) | — | Mar 14 – Apr 4 | Jun 12 |
| Garlic | — | Oct 9 – Nov 6 (fall) | following summer |
| Spinach | — | Mar 14 – Apr 11 | Apr 21 |
| Basil | Mar 8 – Mar 22 | Apr 19 – May 3 | Jun 15 |
Flora's weather over time
How the growing season has shifted here, year by year, from the station's own records.
Each year's last spring frostLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Last spring frost |
|---|---|
| 2000 | Apr 14 |
| 2001 | Apr 19 |
| 2002 | Apr 6 |
| 2003 | Apr 11 |
| 2004 | Apr 15 |
| 2005 | Mar 20 |
| 2006 | Apr 9 |
| 2007 | Apr 14 |
| 2009 | Mar 31 |
| 2010 | Mar 29 |
| 2011 | Apr 1 |
| 2012 | Apr 13 |
| 2013 | Apr 20 |
| 2014 | Apr 17 |
| 2015 | Apr 4 |
| 2016 | Apr 10 |
| 2017 | Mar 20 |
| 2018 | Apr 21 |
| 2019 | Apr 16 |
| 2020 | Apr 19 |
| 2021 | Apr 22 |
| 2022 | Apr 20 |
| 2023 | Apr 25 |
| 2024 | Apr 7 |
| 2025 | Apr 9 |
| 2026 | Mar 29 |
Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Frost-free days |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 175 |
| 2001 | 170 |
| 2002 | 190 |
| 2003 | 173 |
| 2004 | 207 |
| 2005 | 221 |
| 2006 | 185 |
| 2007 | 201 |
| 2009 | 194 |
| 2010 | 213 |
| 2011 | 223 |
| 2012 | 204 |
| 2013 | 184 |
| 2014 | 197 |
| 2015 | 196 |
| 2016 | 213 |
| 2017 | 222 |
| 2018 | 182 |
| 2019 | 198 |
| 2020 | 168 |
| 2021 | 194 |
| 2022 | 180 |
| 2023 | 188 |
| 2024 | 193 |
| 2025 | 214 |
Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Growing-season temperature |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 20.3 °C |
| 2001 | 21.2 °C |
| 2002 | 21.7 °C |
| 2003 | 19.2 °C |
| 2004 | 20.3 °C |
| 2005 | 21.8 °C |
| 2006 | 20.9 °C |
| 2007 | 21.4 °C |
| 2009 | 20.1 °C |
| 2010 | 22.3 °C |
| 2011 | 21.2 °C |
| 2012 | 22.1 °C |
| 2013 | 20.5 °C |
| 2014 | 20.3 °C |
| 2015 | 21.2 °C |
| 2016 | 21.6 °C |
| 2017 | 21.2 °C |
| 2018 | 21.7 °C |
| 2019 | 21.6 °C |
| 2020 | 20.2 °C |
| 2021 | 20.9 °C |
| 2022 | 21.0 °C |
| 2023 | 21.1 °C |
| 2024 | 21.8 °C |
| 2025 | 21.8 °C |
| 2026 | 22.8 °C |
What this means for you: This station's record is too short to show a reliable trend yet.
Source: daily records from Flora (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.