When to plant fava bean in Chicago

In Chicago, typical last spring frost is April 12 and typical first fall frost is November 11. Typical last spring frost: April 12. Fava bean in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 83 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (80 days) but not slow ones (110 days).

Fava bean

How to grow Fava bean Chicago climate Weekly temperatures and windows

Where are you growing?

Tight fit

Not realistic in greenhouse

Tight fit in a cold frame

Fava bean in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 83 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (80 days) but not slow ones (110 days).

When to plantMarch 21 – June 28

Harvest: June 9 – November 6
Season vs crop: 83 grow days vs 80–110 needed
Typical frost (last spring – first fall): April 12 – November 11

Fava bean in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 83 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (80 days) but not slow ones (110 days).

Planting conditions

Direct sow
Harvest

Local activity windows for this place and growing method. Blue fill is usually too cold for this plant. Dashed lines are typical last and first frost.

Suitable growing days in a row83

Days to harvest80–110 days from seed

Mar 21 – Jun 28

Direct sow

Jun 9 – Nov 6

Harvest

Activity	Window	Notes
Direct sow	Mar 21 – Jun 28	Plant outdoors in this window.
Harvest	Jun 9 – Nov 6	Expected harvest from typical days to harvest.

Direct sow
Harvest

Blue fill is usually too cold for this plant. Dashed lines are typical last and first frost (35 seasons (1991–2025)). Adjust a week or two for your conditions.

Planting and growing across the year

Planting is the sow / plant-out window. Growing is daytime air versus this plant’s ideal (15 – 21 °C59 – 70 °F15 – 21 °C (59 – 70 °F)) and tolerable (4 – 24 °C39 – 75 °F4 – 24 °C (39 – 75 °F)) ranges.

Ideal / plantable
Tolerable
Too cold
Too hot
Outside window

Planting uses sow / plant-out rules; growing shows daytime air against this plant’s ideal and tolerable ranges.

Key dates

Typical last spring frostApril 12

Low-risk last spring frostApril 21

Typical first fall frostNovember 11

Low-risk first fall frostOctober 31

Frost-free days212

Outdoor sow dateMarch 21

Direct sow windowMarch 21 – June 28

Suitable growing windowMarch 21 – June 11 (83 days)

Expected harvestJune 9 – November 6

How these dates are judged

Ideal conditions: Daytime air from 15 – 21 °C59 – 70 °F15 – 21 °C (59 – 70 °F).
Suitable conditions: Daytime air from 4 – 24 °C39 – 75 °F4 – 24 °C (39 – 75 °F).
Last frost and first frost: Typical spring and fall frost dates for Chicago, shown in the key dates.
Days to harvest: 80–110 days from seed, from typical days to harvest.
Sowing window: Dated sow and harvest bars use frost dates, soil minima, night limits, and last-sow count-back from typical crop timing. Air ratings on the weekly chart colour only weeks inside that same window — see weekly temperatures and windows.

Other plants for Chicago

Calculated by Plan & Plant. Method. Data 35 seasons (1991–2025).

Frost and suitability dates are typical figures from climate statistics.

Based on 35 years (1991–2025) of ERA5-Land data from Open-Meteo, for an area of about 10 km. Typical dates, not a guarantee.

Dates for Chicago use ERA5-Land cell 41.88, -87.68. How we calculated this · Algorithm 2026-10-season-10.

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