When to plant pumpkin 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. Pumpkin in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 117 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (90 days) but not slow ones (120 days).

Pumpkin

How to grow Pumpkin Chicago climate Weekly temperatures and windows

Where are you growing?

Tight fit

Tight fit in greenhouse

Comfortable in a cold frame

Pumpkin in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 117 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (90 days) but not slow ones (120 days).

When to plantMay 22 – June 14

Harvest: August 20 – October 31
Season vs crop: 117 grow days vs 90–120 needed
Typical frost (last spring – first fall): April 12 – November 11

Pumpkin in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 117 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (90 days) but not slow ones (120 days).

Planting conditions

Direct sow
Grow outdoors
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 row117

Days to harvest90–120 days from seed

May 22 – Jun 14

Direct sow

Jun 15 – Aug 19

Grow outdoors

Aug 20 – Oct 31

Harvest

Activity	Window	Notes
Direct sow	May 22 – Jun 14	Plant outdoors in this window.
Grow outdoors	Jun 15 – Aug 19	Plants grow outdoors until harvest.
Harvest	Aug 20 – Oct 31	Expected harvest from typical days to harvest.

Direct sow
Grow outdoors
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 (21 – 35 °C70 – 95 °F21 – 35 °C (70 – 95 °F)) and tolerable (16 – 38 °C61 – 100 °F16 – 38 °C (61 – 100 °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 dateMay 22

Direct sow windowMay 22 – June 14

Suitable growing windowMay 22 – September 15 (117 days)

Expected harvestAugust 20 – October 31

How these dates are judged

Ideal conditions: Daytime air from 21 – 35 °C70 – 95 °F21 – 35 °C (70 – 95 °F).
Suitable conditions: Daytime air from 16 – 38 °C61 – 100 °F16 – 38 °C (61 – 100 °F).
Last frost and first frost: Typical spring and fall frost dates for Chicago, shown in the key dates.
Days to harvest: 90–120 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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