When to plant sweet potato 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. Sweet potato in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 126 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (85 days) but not slow ones (140 days).

Sweet potato

How to grow Sweet potato Chicago climate Weekly temperatures and windows

Where are you growing?

Tight fit

Tight fit in greenhouse

Comfortable in a cold frame

Sweet potato in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 126 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (85 days) but not slow ones (140 days).

When to plantMay 13 – June 19

Harvest: August 6 – October 31
Season vs crop: 126 grow days vs 85–140 needed
Typical frost (last spring – first fall): April 12 – November 11

Sweet potato in Chicago is doable with planning outdoors. 126 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (85 days) but not slow ones (140 days).

Start slips April 1 – May 8, then transplant May 13 – June 19 so the crop can finish outdoors.

Planting conditions

Suitable growing days in a row126

Days to harvest85–140 days from planting

No planting window is recorded for this place.

Too cold
Frost line

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 – 32 °C70 – 90 °F21 – 32 °C (70 – 90 °F)) and tolerable (16 – 35 °C61 – 95 °F16 – 35 °C (61 – 95 °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

Earliest indoor seed startApril 1

Latest indoor seed startMay 8

Transplant outdoorsMay 13 – June 19

Direct sow windownot recommended here

Suitable growing windowMay 13 – September 15 (126 days)

Expected harvestAugust 6 – October 31

How these dates are judged

Ideal conditions: Daytime air from 21 – 32 °C70 – 90 °F21 – 32 °C (70 – 90 °F).
Suitable conditions: Daytime air from 16 – 35 °C61 – 95 °F16 – 35 °C (61 – 95 °F).
Last frost and first frost: Typical spring and fall frost dates for Chicago, shown in the key dates.
Days to harvest: 85–140 days from planting, 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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