Grecian windflower · Cicero, Illinois, United States
When to plant grecian windflowers in Cicero
Main outdoor window
6-20 Oct
A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.
Timed from last spring frost
4 April
In Cicero, on your chosen risk.
First flowers
1 Mar - 30 Apr
If you plant at the start of the window.
The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.
Step by step in Cicero
Download these planting dates (.ics)
Import into Apple Calendar, Google Calendar or Outlook. Dates use the selected risk level and are planning estimates, not frost alerts.
Each window is a planning range. Check the forecast, soil and cultivar before planting; a later date is not automatically safer in hot or wet conditions.
Plant the tubers
6-20 Oct
Four to six weeks before your first frost, so roots form before the ground cools.
In flower
1 Mar - 30 Apr
Grecian windflowers through the year
Against the frost risk in Cicero
Seasonal context
Rainfall and the growing season in Cicero
May has the highest average precipitation (119 mm); January has the lowest (47 mm). Compare this pattern with the planting windows and your water supply.
During wetter months, check that beds and containers drain after heavy rain. During drier months, plan how you will keep seeds and new transplants watered. Monthly averages can hide long dry spells and intense storms; they do not show soil moisture, humidity or this week's weather.
Source: NASA POWER, corrected MERRA-2 precipitation, 2001–2020. Values are approximate monthly totals, including the water equivalent of snow, from the nearest 0.5° × 0.625° grid cell. This reference period differs from the temperature record. Rainfall provides context and does not change the calculated planting dates. Method and limitations.
Monthly growing conditions in Cicero
Compare the planting window with the local temperature pattern. These are historical monthly averages, not this year's forecast or measured soil temperatures. Average frost days do not tell you whether a particular night will freeze.
| Month | Average low | Average high | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | -4.9°C (23.2°F)23.2°F (-4.9°C) | -0.2°C (31.7°F)31.7°F (-0.2°C) | 25.7 |
| February | -4.5°C (24°F)24°F (-4.5°C) | 0.8°C (33.5°F)33.5°F (0.8°C) | 23.6 |
| March | -0.5°C (31°F)31°F (-0.5°C) | 5.1°C (41.2°F)41.2°F (5.1°C) | 16.9 |
| April | 3.8°C (38.8°F)38.8°F (3.8°C) | 10°C (50°F)50°F (10°C) | 2.7 |
| May | 8.8°C (47.8°F)47.8°F (8.8°C) | 15.2°C (59.3°F)59.3°F (15.2°C) | 0.0 |
| June | 15.1°C (59.1°F)59.1°F (15.1°C) | 21.1°C (70°F)70°F (21.1°C) | 0.0 |
| July | 19.6°C (67.3°F)67.3°F (19.6°C) | 24.9°C (76.8°F)76.8°F (24.9°C) | 0.0 |
| August | 20°C (68.1°F)68.1°F (20°C) | 25.1°C (77.1°F)77.1°F (25.1°C) | 0.0 |
| September | 16.4°C (61.5°F)61.5°F (16.4°C) | 22°C (71.6°F)71.6°F (22°C) | 0.0 |
| October | 9.9°C (49.7°F)49.7°F (9.9°C) | 15.6°C (60°F)60°F (15.6°C) | 0.0 |
| November | 3.4°C (38.2°F)38.2°F (3.4°C) | 8.5°C (47.3°F)47.3°F (8.5°C) | 5.5 |
| December | -1.8°C (28.9°F)28.9°F (-1.8°C) | 2.7°C (36.8°F)36.8°F (2.7°C) | 18.4 |
For grecian windflowers, also check drainage, sunlight and cultivar requirements. See the rainfall context above; humidity, irrigation and local pest pressure are not calculated.
Local growing check
Before choosing grecian windflowers for Cicero
- May is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 119 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
The temperature and rainfall tables on this page show the underlying climate estimates. How these suitability checks work · Record what happens in your garden.
Before you plant grecian windflowers
Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.
- Frost tolerance does not make saturated or frozen soil suitable for planting. Wait until the bed can be worked without smearing or compacting it.
- Use the maturity range on your seed packet when choosing a variety. Cold, short days and transplant stress can make harvest later than the calendar estimate.
Leave a quiet summer space for dormant wood anemone tubers
A position under deciduous planting can offer light during early growth and shade later. Provide moisture while plants are active and soil that drains well; a permanently saturated planting hole is unsuitable. Follow the supplier's guidance for the tubers rather than treating them like large tulip bulbs.
Let leaves complete their growth and mark the patch before it becomes dormant. Avoid repeated digging through the tubers when adding summer plants. If a colony expands, divide carefully at a suitable stage and compare repeat flowering instead of judging success only by the first year's display.
What to record this season
Did the colony return and flower, and was it left undisturbed during dormancy? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.
Further reading: NC State Extension: Anemone blanda . General crop guidance; local dates on this site are calculated separately. Source checked 19 September 2026 by Safe to Plant; this is not an expert review.
The reference describes plant identity and cultivation. Its regional calendar months and hardiness observations do not validate the calculated dates for another location.
How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy
Why these dates
A position under deciduous planting can offer light during early growth and shade later. Provide moisture while plants are active and soil that drains well; a permanently saturated planting hole is unsuitable. Follow the supplier's guidance for the tubers rather than treating them like large tulip bulbs.
Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.
Grecian windflowers are anchored to the first autumn frost rather than the last spring one, so the planting window on this page counts backwards from the end of the season in Cicero instead of forwards from its start.
Cicero is zone 7a, within the crop's general range. This is an initial cold-hardiness check; cultivar, exposure, drainage and unusual winters can still change the outcome.
The median frost-free season here is 227 days, against 140 to 180 days to first flower for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.
Also in Cicero
Other flowers to time
Growing grecian windflowers in Cicero
Can I grow grecian windflowers in Cicero?
The calendar estimates a planting window, not a guarantee of success. May is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 119 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
When should I plant grecian windflowers in Cicero?
Aim for 6-20 Oct in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 22 Sep - 6 Oct - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
When might grecian windflowers flower in Cicero?
The estimated period is 1 Mar - 30 Apr, based on 140 to 180 days from the modeled planting date. Cultivar, planting material and growing conditions can change this interval; check the plant as well as the calendar.
How much frost will grecian windflowers tolerate?
Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.