Before you do anything else, gardening starts with knowing where you live, specifically your zone.

As it pertains to gardening, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) categorizes geographic regions based on their average minimum winter temperatures.

Each of these regions are referred to as USDA Plant Hardiness Zones.

The collective map of these Plant Hardiness Zones was developed specifically to help gardeners and growers select plants that are most likely to thrive in their specific climate.

 

The map divides the United States into various zones, labeled with a numerical designation, with Zone 1 being the coldest and Zone 13 the warmest.

Each zone represents a 10-degree Fahrenheit difference in the average minimum temperature.

Recently, the zones have been further segmented into half zones of 5-degree Fahrenheit increments, labeled (a) or (b).

For example, I garden in North Alabama Zone 7b.

Which means my minimum average temperature during the winter is between 5° to 10°F.

These averages are based on weather data collected between 1976-2005 but the weather is constantly being monitored and the map updated.

Please keep in mind, in a particularly harsh winter, the temperature might be much colder than the average low temperatures for your zone.

A certain Arctic blast of December 2022 comes to mind (yikes!).

In addition, as climate changes, your zone classification is likely to change over time.

Nevertheless, these zones provide valuable information for determining which plants are suitable for a particular area, as different plants have different cold tolerance levels.

Knowledge of your zone reduces the risk of selecting plants that would suffer from frost.

To find your gardening zone, go to the USDA website and enter your zip code.

Congratulations! You have just completed the first step to beginner gardening.

What zone do you garden in? Share with us below!