Pak choi · Skokie, Illinois, United States
When to plant pak choi in Skokie
Main outdoor window
29 Apr - 13 May
A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.
Timed from last spring frost
4 April
In Skokie, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
8-23 Jun
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 Skokie
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.
Start indoors
7-21 Mar
Four weeks before your last frost, under cover or on a windowsill.
Sow for autumn
19 Aug - 9 Sep
Counting back 69 days from your first frost so the crop matures in time.
Sow direct
29 Apr - 13 May
Delayed by a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. The frost-only date would be 21 Mar. Measure your soil before planting.
Plant out
29 Apr - 13 May
Delayed by a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. The frost-only date would be 28 Mar. Measure your soil before planting.
Harvest
8-23 Jun
Pak choi through the year
Against the frost risk in Skokie
Seasonal context
Rainfall and the growing season in Skokie
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 Skokie
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 pak choi, 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 pak choi for Skokie
- 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 pak choi
Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.
- Measure the soil at sowing depth. Aim for at least 10°C (50°F); the calendar estimates soil warmth from air temperatures and cannot measure your bed.
- Check the local overnight forecast before planting out. Delay planting or keep protection ready if frost is forecast, even after the historical last-frost date.
- Harden off plants raised indoors: gradually expose them to outdoor light, wind and temperature before their final move into the bed.
- 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.
Separate baby-leaf harvest from full-size plants
Keep growth steady with fertile soil and reliable moisture. Check the variety's seasonal advice because unsuitable temperatures and day length can cause early flowering.
Harvest whole young plants or selected outer leaves according to your plan. Check the leaf bases for slugs and damage; a calendar date cannot tell you whether the hidden stems remain sound.
What to record this season
Was baby-leaf or full-size harvesting more successful in that season? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.
Further reading: RHS pak choi growing guide . 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 RHS guide is written for UK growing conditions. Use its cultivation advice with local cultivar and seasonal guidance; its calendar months are not worldwide recommendations.
How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy
Why these dates
Keep growth steady with fertile soil and reliable moisture. Check the variety's seasonal advice because unsuitable temperatures and day length can cause early flowering.
Protect tender growth from frost and wait for suitable growing warmth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: duration, wind, plant age and acclimatisation affect damage.
This calendar uses frost-relative offsets as a starting point. Pak choi are timed from 4 weeks before that frost for an indoor start, with planting out 1 weeks before it, and this page simply resolves those offsets against the frost date computed for Skokie.
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 227 days, against 40 to 55 days to maturity for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.
Also in Skokie
Other vegetables to time
Growing pak choi in Skokie
Can I grow pak choi in Skokie?
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 pak choi in Skokie?
Aim for 29 Apr - 13 May in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 29 Apr - 13 May - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
Can I plant pak choi earlier in Skokie?
The historical frost estimate is 21 Mar. For Pak choi, an air-temperature model estimates soil warmth of about 10°C (50°F) around 29 Apr. 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 pak choi be ready to harvest in Skokie?
The estimated period is 8-23 Jun, based on 40 to 55 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 pak choi tolerate?
Protect tender growth from frost and wait for suitable growing warmth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: duration, wind, plant age and acclimatisation affect damage.