Mangetout · Oak Lawn, Illinois, United States
When to plant mangetout in Oak Lawn
Main outdoor window
31 Mar - 21 Apr
A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.
Timed from last spring frost
22 April
In Oak Lawn, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
1 May - 31 Aug
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 Oak Lawn
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.
Sow for autumn
18 Jul - 8 Aug
Counting back 84 days from your first frost so the crop matures in time.
Sow direct
31 Mar - 21 Apr
Delayed by a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. The frost-only date would be 18 Mar. Measure your soil before planting.
Harvest
1 May - 31 Aug
Mangetout through the year
Against the frost risk in Oak Lawn
Seasonal context
Rainfall and the growing season in Oak Lawn
May has the highest average precipitation (114 mm); January has the lowest (51 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 Oak Lawn
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 | -7.8°C (17.9°F)17.9°F (-7.8°C) | -0.4°C (31.3°F)31.3°F (-0.4°C) | 28.4 |
| February | -6.5°C (20.3°F)20.3°F (-6.5°C) | 2.1°C (35.7°F)35.7°F (2.1°C) | 25.9 |
| March | -1.6°C (29.1°F)29.1°F (-1.6°C) | 8.2°C (46.7°F)46.7°F (8.2°C) | 21.5 |
| April | 3.4°C (38.2°F)38.2°F (3.4°C) | 14.6°C (58.3°F)58.3°F (14.6°C) | 6.7 |
| May | 9.4°C (48.9°F)48.9°F (9.4°C) | 20.4°C (68.8°F)68.8°F (20.4°C) | 0.2 |
| June | 15.2°C (59.4°F)59.4°F (15.2°C) | 25.7°C (78.2°F)78.2°F (25.7°C) | 0.0 |
| July | 18.1°C (64.6°F)64.6°F (18.1°C) | 28.1°C (82.6°F)82.6°F (28.1°C) | 0.0 |
| August | 17.8°C (64°F)64°F (17.8°C) | 28°C (82.3°F)82.3°F (28°C) | 0.0 |
| September | 13.7°C (56.6°F)56.6°F (13.7°C) | 24.7°C (76.5°F)76.5°F (24.7°C) | 0.0 |
| October | 7°C (44.6°F)44.6°F (7°C) | 17.5°C (63.4°F)63.4°F (17.5°C) | 1.4 |
| November | 0.5°C (32.8°F)32.8°F (0.5°C) | 9.2°C (48.6°F)48.6°F (9.2°C) | 14.8 |
| December | -4.7°C (23.6°F)23.6°F (-4.7°C) | 2.5°C (36.5°F)36.5°F (2.5°C) | 25.9 |
For mangetout, 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 mangetout for Oak Lawn
- May is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 114 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 mangetout
Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.
- Measure the soil at sowing depth. Aim for at least 7°C (44.6°F); the calendar estimates soil warmth from air temperatures and cannot measure your bed.
- 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.
Pick flat pods before the peas swell
Choose supports for the cultivar's height and install them early. Pea tendrils need something to grip, and tangled unsupported plants make frequent picking harder.
Check pods often during flowering weather and pick them while tender. Maintain moisture at the roots and record when heat or mildew brings the useful crop to an end.
What to record this season
How frequently did you need to pick before seeds enlarged inside the pods? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.
Further reading: NC State Extension Plant Toolbox: Pisum sativum . 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 crop identity and cultivation. North Carolina planting dates are not local dates for other regions.
How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy
Why these dates
Choose supports for the cultivar's height and install them early. Pea tendrils need something to grip, and tangled unsupported plants make frequent picking harder.
Cold tolerance varies with cultivar, plant age, acclimatisation and the duration of a freeze. A plant surviving frost does not mean its leaves, heads, flowers or developing crop will remain undamaged. Check the forecast and the variety's local advice.
This calendar uses frost-relative offsets as a starting point. Mangetout are timed for direct sowing 5 weeks before it, and this page simply resolves those offsets against the frost date computed for Oak Lawn.
The calendar also applies a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. Where that estimate is later than the frost-based date, it delays the window. Soil in your own garden can warm earlier or later; a thermometer at sowing depth is a better final check. Cold, wet conditions can slow germination and increase decay risk.
The median frost-free season here is 192 days, against 55 to 70 days to maturity for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.
Also in Oak Lawn
Other vegetables to time
Growing mangetout in Oak Lawn
Can I grow mangetout in Oak Lawn?
The calendar estimates a planting window, not a guarantee of success. May is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 114 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 mangetout in Oak Lawn?
Aim for 31 Mar - 21 Apr in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 31 Mar - 21 Apr - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
Can I plant mangetout earlier in Oak Lawn?
The historical frost estimate is 18 Mar. For Mangetout, an air-temperature model estimates soil warmth of about 7°C (44.6°F) around 31 Mar. This is not a soil measurement or a forecast. Check your bed at sowing depth; cold, wet conditions can slow growth and increase decay risk.
When might mangetout be ready to harvest in Oak Lawn?
The estimated period is 1 May - 31 Aug, based on 55 to 70 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 mangetout tolerate?
Cold tolerance varies with cultivar, plant age, acclimatisation and the duration of a freeze. A plant surviving frost does not mean its leaves, heads, flowers or developing crop will remain undamaged. Check the forecast and the variety's local advice.