Planting Zone Map Gardening Zones Locked wiki
When adding new perennials to your landscape it's necessary to determine the difference between which plants will thrive in your region and which plants may need to be treated as annuals. Information such as light requirements and soil conditions are also important factors, but hardiness is key when selecting perennials. That's where a planting zone map comes in handy.
A planting zone map lays out which of the 11 hardiness zones you live in. These 11 zones are broken down by a 10 degree difference in the average minimum temperature. For example the lower planting zone with a hardiness of 2 could have cold lows of -40 to -50 degrees Fahrenheit, where the warmest zone might only have lows in the 30 degree range. Once you've determined which hardiness, or planting zone, you live in then this information will assist you when purchasing hardy plants for your area.
Trusted local nurseries often sell plants that are labeled perennials for your zone but many times Big Box stores may sell items marked as perennial that aren't actually for your area, so planting zone maps not only contain useful information, but could save you money and aggravation.
Planting Zone Map
Learn what your hardiness zone is.
United States Planting Zone Map
[Your browser doesn't support IFrames. Click here to look up your arborday.org hardiness zone.]
Have climate changes increased your planting zone?
In 2006 Arbor Day released their new hardiness zone map and it got a lot of gardeners excited. Why? The new map displayed that there has been a warming trend of the zones. For the last few years I've experienced the climate changes of warmer, dryer weather which hasn't been welcomed since I detest dragging the hose around but I have to admit I was ecstatic to learn that zone 6 plants might be in my future, however, for the most part I'll stick with the tried & true for zone 5.
Not a gambling gardener? Here are a few of the best ways to make sure a plant is hardy for your zone.
Read plant tags! Listen to your gardening peers for plant suggestions. If researching a plant online; find out who is growing it, and where. There are plant profile sites like, Plant Files, where you can search the plant by name and then see who is growing it and what planting zone they live in.
Related Terms
Perennial -- A plant that dies down to the ground during winter and survives to grow again each spring.
Zone Pushers -- Gardeners that like to push the bar by planting beyond their planting zone.
A planting zone map lays out which of the 11 hardiness zones you live in. These 11 zones are broken down by a 10 degree difference in the average minimum temperature. For example the lower planting zone with a hardiness of 2 could have cold lows of -40 to -50 degrees Fahrenheit, where the warmest zone might only have lows in the 30 degree range. Once you've determined which hardiness, or planting zone, you live in then this information will assist you when purchasing hardy plants for your area.
Trusted local nurseries often sell plants that are labeled perennials for your zone but many times Big Box stores may sell items marked as perennial that aren't actually for your area, so planting zone maps not only contain useful information, but could save you money and aggravation.
Planting Zone Map
Learn what your hardiness zone is.
United States Planting Zone Map
[Your browser doesn't support IFrames. Click here to look up your arborday.org hardiness zone.]
Have climate changes increased your planting zone?
In 2006 Arbor Day released their new hardiness zone map and it got a lot of gardeners excited. Why? The new map displayed that there has been a warming trend of the zones. For the last few years I've experienced the climate changes of warmer, dryer weather which hasn't been welcomed since I detest dragging the hose around but I have to admit I was ecstatic to learn that zone 6 plants might be in my future, however, for the most part I'll stick with the tried & true for zone 5.
Not a gambling gardener? Here are a few of the best ways to make sure a plant is hardy for your zone.
Read plant tags! Listen to your gardening peers for plant suggestions. If researching a plant online; find out who is growing it, and where. There are plant profile sites like, Plant Files, where you can search the plant by name and then see who is growing it and what planting zone they live in.
Related Terms
Perennial -- A plant that dies down to the ground during winter and survives to grow again each spring.
Zone Pushers -- Gardeners that like to push the bar by planting beyond their planting zone.
