To start a successful garden, you need to know two things:
- Your zone
- Your last frost date (for a spring/summer garden) and first frost date (for a fall/winter garden)
Identifying Your Zone
Different plants perform best in varying climates. To grow food successfully, you’ll want to plant varieties that thrive in your climate.
Since the U.S. is such a large country, there are many climates represented within it. To help gardeners and farmers understand their climate from a plant’s point of view, the United States Department of Agriculture divided the country into 10 “Hardiness Zones” based on decades of temperature data.
You can find your zone using the USDA’s interactive map here: https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/
Just knowing your zone’s number isn’t very helpful on its own. However, it is useful information for seed shopping.
Most seed companies list the ideal growing zones for each seed variety—within the product description and/or on the seed packet itself.
Knowing your zone helps you avoid seeds that won’t perform well in your environment.
Determining Your First and Last Frost Dates
Frost date information is critical as many plants cannot handle freezing temperatures. The average frost date for your area indicates the day of the year when the temperature in your area are likely to dip below 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
For the spring and summer garden, you need to know your last frost date to determine when you can plant heat-loving crops.
For the fall and winter garden, you need to know your first frost date to determine when you can plant cool-weather crops. It’s important to time the planting of such crops so that they are mature enough to survive the first frost.
Additionally, you’ll want to harvest all of your warm-weather crops before your first frost.
When you put the two dates together, you have a clear picture of your growing season.
The Farmer’s Almanac provides an online tool that shows your first and last frost dates based on your zip code.
Access the Farmer’s Almanac tool here to identify your frost dates.
I recommend recording the dates in your planner. I also drew an arrow on my Clyde’s planner (see below) to quickly see where to line up the red frost line:
A Word to the Wise
It is natural to want to plant as soon as possible. Unfortunately, many beginner gardeners make the mistake of planting too early based on spring-like weather.
While the weather may warm up significantly before your average last frost date, it is the soil temperature that is important—and the soil takes longer to warm up than air.
I have heard—and seen—many testimonies of “late” planters outgrowing and outperforming those who planted early. That’s because heat-loving crops thrive quickly in sufficiently warmed soil, whereas they can be stunted when planted in cooler soil.
