When I need to research something garden related (in this case USDA Hardiness Zones), your channel is my go-to for information. Your videos contain quantitative and qualitative information. I never knew I could learn so much about Hardiness Zones until I watched this video. Thank you for making such thoroughly informative videos!
It annoys me every time I go to the big box store and they sell fruit tree varieties that won't do well in our zone 9b. No way there are enough chill hours for them to produce. You have to go to the local nurseries, they know what plants do well or not.
Great educational video. Well explained and good clarification. The differences in climate, elevation, wind, conditions within seasons are not always addressed in these discussions. Kudos to you.
My wife got me a weather station for Christmas and I'm geeking out over all the great data! I live 10 miles from the NWS station in my area. I'm already amazed at the differences at my house vs. their report.
You are a font of information. I love videos like this! Lots of background, and it’s broadly applicable to people working in their landscapes. Thank you for all of your excellent content.
Another excellent overview! I'm in rural NW New Mexico and there is a lot of variance between the nearest weather stations, even without taking your own property's microclimates into consideration. Wish there were a reference that included altitude, wind activity and annual precipitation. I'm now keeping my own records ~ which will also be a general guideline for me, NOT gospel. Every year is its own adventure. 🙃 Thanks again for all the time you put into making these videos. I'm sure this one will help many newbie gardeners gain a better understanding of the current system. 🌦🌈🌻
I hear you. Here in the high country of Arizona, my climate is very different from areas only 5 miles in either direction, some colder and others warmer, according to elevation. Observing the conditions in my own garden over a 20 year period has given me much better information than charts of hardiness zones.
Another great video! I have long thought that the USDA should come up with "growing zones" in addition to the hardiness zones. The growing zones could take into account length of season and mean high temperature for that period, or the mean temperature for the period between frosts (if they occur). I would also suggest that folks push their zones a bit if significant cost is not involved. For instance, we plant berry bushes that are 1 or 2 zones higher than here, but would not do that with trees. My family has developed raspberries and blackberries that shouldn't grow here simply by buying a dozen plants and seeing if they survive, then propagating any that do make it.
The insulating snow explains why I can sometimes get away with growing rosemary as a perennial in zone 5b/6a (southern Ontario). Now if only there was a way to grow figs here...
Thank You for another timely and informative video. Like you, I have seen some plants in some big box stores that were not supposed to grow at the time they had them. I have read plant tags that say the plant will grow in full sun and its a shade plant.I was just looking at the USDA map in a seed catalog this morning. It lists zone 5 and 6 as having the same temps. It also says that I am in zone 6, even though some other information sites say 7a. You are right when you say its just a guide.
Oh, you are so right about all that info. We have tried and failed experimenting with perennials many times hoping in the long run that we could acclimate them. Very, very few did.
Arnold Arboretum! I used to live right next to the Arnold Arboretum and my wife and I (and young children before we moved) would go for walks there daily. Place is a treasure within the city of Boston.
My area is listed at 6B, but where we live is very wooded and other nearby areas are city or towns. We've noticed that our woods cools our temps significantly compared to towns/city.
Another great clear and concise video. I’m still surprised we are in the same zone given your altitude and me being at 4700’. Pueblo does sit in the river valley though. I do remember in 2017 seeing the low temp of -17.
I also live in Colorado and can't remember it getting close to -20 where I live. That must have been years ago. One time last year I went to a website that tracked our temperatures the last 3 years. I found the coldest in got in the last 3 years was -9. That is a 11+ difference but that makes sense given how they took the hardiness map from over 30 years and how fast global warming is warming us. To me as someone who grows perennial fruit chill hours are more important. If a perennial plant does not get it's chill hours it does not produce and chill hours can get rather high with some ranging from 700 to 1000 chill hours. I also agree some plants won't grow well in every zone. Paw Paw is a good example where it takes 30 inches of water per year but is hardy to zone 4 so I could easily grow it to my zone but it would be hard to water 30 inches a year where I live.
Very nice presentation. I think that it will give people an idea of how to use hardiness zone information because you emphasized the fact that it is related to perennials, not annuals that we usually grow in our veg gardens.
Thank you so much G. Scott, you nailed it, I have done that in the past..getting grasses from home depo, and been tented to buy one of those "cocktail trees" , but I din't. You made it so clear and easy to understand , thank you so much .
Averages are great, but they tend to hide anomalies. The range of temps, high, and low combined with the average for the given period will give you a better idea of what to expect.
Thank You for this informative video. I´ve to search where I can get these infos for my zone in germany. Btw. did I ever mention yet that I´ve been in Colorado two times? Was for putting up a machine in Longmont and visited althogh Boulder and the Rocky Mountains. Absolute fascinating landscape!
Hi Scott, Great video as always. I think the USDA hardiness zone adjustment is long overdue considering the accelerated climate change we are seeing in the past decade. You are probably already in 6a! I wonder what what kind of crops we in zone 6 could grow in another 15-20 years?
I’m really struggling with what i can actively grow in my unheated greenhouse in 6b/7 I just want some evergreens in there in pots over the winter for ambiance as we will spend time in there to get some outdoor time when it’s cold. I don’t want the huge change in temps over the day/night to kill the plants such as boxwood, ivy and arborvitae
I'm curious to know if I should fertilize my garden bed right now in Jan. We get down to the low 30s here in Cali. I'm in zone 9. Winter greens and broccoli are doing great. But my artichokes seem hungry😳Thankyou Gardener Scott👍😊
It depends on whether your soil needs nutrients. Many soils are deficient in nitrogen and plants like artichokes use a lot of it. If you have a nitrogen deficiency, applying now can give a boost.
Out of all the channels I watch, I think I learn the most from you. I live in 8b, and haven’t found a channel based in my zone. Can you recommend one? Thank you!
Amazing, I have the same hardiness zone as you and yet I live in Quebec Canada. I didn't know it and just looked it up. So whatever you are growing, I can grow. Another great reason to watch. Thanks
Gardner Scott - thanks for the very informative video. For those of us in zones 9+, can we use the zones on the tag (ie zone 6-8) tell us if a plant will do well in our heat?
Good day sir thank you very much for all the information you provide I was curious if there's any chance that I can contact you directly and perhaps I can request from you a conversation for some of your advice
I know you're in the US and talking about USDA zones, but it would have been an even better video if you had given Celsius equivalents for the temps as you spoke (on screen, even if not in your monologue). I found it hard to listen to -- almost like my brain was treating all those temps in Fahrenheit as a foreign language.
We have to bring dirt inside in late fall before it freezes solid and can't be collected until spring, so we can use it in the window in winter. Is the garden window a zone 10 microclimate?
I thought hardiness zones were useful in knowing when you can directly sow seeds and when to start seeds for your vegetable garden. Is that not true? On the back of most commercial seed packs it tells you when to plant outdoors according to your zone.
Hardiness zones aren't helpful for when to start seeds. Use your last frost date for that. Those charts on seed packets are a general guide but not very accurate.
Please do another video where this one left off. Hope do I determine my season length? Are you saying I can plant seeds in my soil now? If so, which ones? I have always planted per seed packet instructions and most longer growing items don’t get to maturity before snow hits. I’m in zone 5b in NY.
I am planning a follow-up video next month to discuss season length. The growing season for most vegetable garden plants run from the last frost date in spring to the first frost date in fall. There are very few seeds you can probably do now. You have to look at your last frost date to determine when to start seeds outdoors.
My favorite line of the whole video, "it's getting cold out here so I'm going inside now." Haha, I can empathize from zone 4B.
When I need to research something garden related (in this case USDA Hardiness Zones), your channel is my go-to for information. Your videos contain quantitative and qualitative information. I never knew I could learn so much about Hardiness Zones until I watched this video. Thank you for making such thoroughly informative videos!
It annoys me every time I go to the big box store and they sell fruit tree varieties that won't do well in our zone 9b. No way there are enough chill hours for them to produce. You have to go to the local nurseries, they know what plants do well or not.
Agree!!
Great educational video. Well explained and good clarification. The differences in climate, elevation, wind, conditions within seasons are not always addressed in these discussions. Kudos to you.
Very thorough video! This is a great guide for beginners, but there’s a few sustainable ways to “push” the zone.
My wife got me a weather station for Christmas and I'm geeking out over all the great data! I live 10 miles from the NWS station in my area. I'm already amazed at the differences at my house vs. their report.
That's awesome! I geek out over weather too. Enjoy!
You are a font of information. I love videos like this! Lots of background, and it’s broadly applicable to people working in their landscapes. Thank you for all of your excellent content.
Another excellent overview! I'm in rural NW New Mexico and there is a lot of variance between the nearest weather stations, even without taking your own property's microclimates into consideration. Wish there were a reference that included altitude, wind activity and annual precipitation. I'm now keeping my own records ~ which will also be a general guideline for me, NOT gospel. Every year is its own adventure. 🙃 Thanks again for all the time you put into making these videos. I'm sure this one will help many newbie gardeners gain a better understanding of the current system. 🌦🌈🌻
I hear you. Here in the high country of Arizona, my climate is very different from areas only 5 miles in either direction, some colder and others warmer, according to elevation. Observing the conditions in my own garden over a 20 year period has given me much better information than charts of hardiness zones.
I'm in NW New Mexico, also😊
Another great video! I have long thought that the USDA should come up with "growing zones" in addition to the hardiness zones. The growing zones could take into account length of season and mean high temperature for that period, or the mean temperature for the period between frosts (if they occur). I would also suggest that folks push their zones a bit if significant cost is not involved. For instance, we plant berry bushes that are 1 or 2 zones higher than here, but would not do that with trees. My family has developed raspberries and blackberries that shouldn't grow here simply by buying a dozen plants and seeing if they survive, then propagating any that do make it.
The insulating snow explains why I can sometimes get away with growing rosemary as a perennial in zone 5b/6a (southern Ontario). Now if only there was a way to grow figs here...
Plant hardiness knowledge is key
Thank You for another timely and informative video. Like you, I have seen some plants in some big box stores that were not supposed to grow at the time they had them. I have read plant tags that say the plant will grow in full sun and its a shade plant.I was just looking at the USDA map in a seed catalog this morning. It lists zone 5 and 6 as having the same temps. It also says that I am in zone 6, even though some other information sites say 7a. You are right when you say its just a guide.
Great information. Know the length of your own growing season. 🫑🌶🥕🥬🌽🥒🥑
Oh, you are so right about all that info. We have tried and failed experimenting with perennials many times hoping in the long run that we could acclimate them. Very, very few did.
Arnold Arboretum! I used to live right next to the Arnold Arboretum and my wife and I (and young children before we moved) would go for walks there daily. Place is a treasure within the city of Boston.
My area is listed at 6B, but where we live is very wooded and other nearby areas are city or towns. We've noticed that our woods cools our temps significantly compared to towns/city.
Another great clear and concise video. I’m still surprised we are in the same zone given your altitude and me being at 4700’. Pueblo does sit in the river valley though. I do remember in 2017 seeing the low temp of -17.
Thanks, Frank. I've wondered the same, especially since you're so much hotter in summer. I think you're right that the valley holds the cold.
Old Farmer's Almanac for finding hardiness grow zones.
I also live in Colorado and can't remember it getting close to -20 where I live. That must have been years ago. One time last year I went to a website that tracked our temperatures the last 3 years. I found the coldest in got in the last 3 years was -9. That is a 11+ difference but that makes sense given how they took the hardiness map from over 30 years and how fast global warming is warming us. To me as someone who grows perennial fruit chill hours are more important. If a perennial plant does not get it's chill hours it does not produce and chill hours can get rather high with some ranging from 700 to 1000 chill hours. I also agree some plants won't grow well in every zone. Paw Paw is a good example where it takes 30 inches of water per year but is hardy to zone 4 so I could easily grow it to my zone but it would be hard to water 30 inches a year where I live.
You're right to focus on chill hours and plant requirements too.
Good to know, thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Knowing my zone saved me so much money and grief 🤦🏽♀️ Reading label is so important. Thanks so much
Very nice presentation. I think that it will give people an idea of how to use hardiness zone information because you emphasized the fact that it is related to perennials, not annuals that we usually grow in our veg gardens.
Thanks
Thanks great info
Thank you so much G. Scott, you nailed it, I have done that in the past..getting grasses from home depo, and been tented to buy one of those "cocktail trees" , but I din't. You made it so clear and easy to understand , thank you so much .
Averages are great, but they tend to hide anomalies. The range of temps, high, and low combined with the average for the given period will give you a better idea of what to expect.
Thank You for this informative video. I´ve to search where I can get these infos for my zone in germany. Btw. did I ever mention yet that I´ve been in Colorado two times? Was for putting up a machine in Longmont and visited althogh Boulder and the Rocky Mountains. Absolute fascinating landscape!
I'm in zone 4 Quebec.... VERY cold
Excellent Video. For your information, Tucson is in hardiness Zones 9a and 9b , and not 8. Thank you!
Thank you for the update. I was reporting what the National Gardening Association had listed and I guess they were wrong.
Hi Scott,
Great video as always. I think the USDA hardiness zone adjustment is long overdue considering the accelerated climate change we are seeing in the past decade. You are probably already in 6a! I wonder what what kind of crops we in zone 6 could grow in another 15-20 years?
Good question. Time will tell.
I’m really struggling with what i can actively grow in my unheated greenhouse in 6b/7 I just want some evergreens in there in pots over the winter for ambiance as we will spend time in there to get some outdoor time when it’s cold. I don’t want the huge change in temps over the day/night to kill the plants such as boxwood, ivy and arborvitae
I'm curious to know if I should fertilize my garden bed right now in Jan. We get down to the low 30s here in Cali. I'm in zone 9. Winter greens and broccoli are doing great. But my artichokes seem hungry😳Thankyou Gardener Scott👍😊
It depends on whether your soil needs nutrients. Many soils are deficient in nitrogen and plants like artichokes use a lot of it. If you have a nitrogen deficiency, applying now can give a boost.
Out of all the channels I watch, I think I learn the most from you. I live in 8b, and haven’t found a channel based in my zone. Can you recommend one? Thank you!
I think the Scott Head - Black Gumbo channel is 8b.
@@GardenerScott thank you!!
Amazing, I have the same hardiness zone as you and yet I live in Quebec Canada. I didn't know it and just looked it up. So whatever you are growing, I can grow. Another great reason to watch. Thanks
Indonesia coming...m
Gardner Scott - thanks for the very informative video. For those of us in zones 9+, can we use the zones on the tag (ie zone 6-8) tell us if a plant will do well in our heat?
Yes, in most cases you can. Some perennial plants and trees do require periods of cold during winter to perform best.
I’m in Littleton! Hey CO brother!
My best friend lives there. Wish I did
@@gtavtheavengergunnerlegend3340 it’s a great place to live...we’re at around 5.6k feet. Just right for us.
I have good friends in Littleton. I love it.
Good day sir thank you very much for all the information you provide I was curious if there's any chance that I can contact you directly and perhaps I can request from you a conversation for some of your advice
You can send questions to info@gardenerscott.com
I know you're in the US and talking about USDA zones, but it would have been an even better video if you had given Celsius equivalents for the temps as you spoke (on screen, even if not in your monologue). I found it hard to listen to -- almost like my brain was treating all those temps in Fahrenheit as a foreign language.
Lol! That's how I feel when I watch David Attenborough specials. I have to pause it and ask "Alexa, what's 8 degrees celsius in fahrenheit?" 😄
So my orange tree tag says 30 degrees. So I shouldn't expose it to anything below 30?
That's right. Temperatures below freezing can damage it.
We have to bring dirt inside in late fall before it freezes solid and can't be collected until spring, so we can use it in the window in winter. Is the garden window a zone 10 microclimate?
I'd guess it's at least that unless the window frosts at night. It should always be above freezing.
How to you water during the winter once you blow out all your sprinkler lines
I have a hose for watering on warm days and drain it well after using so it doesn't freeze.
Don’t I remember a similar USA map with average WARMEST temperatures by region?
Sunset magazine has published a map like that.
@@GardenerScott Ah, that must be where I saw it! Thanks!
And y'all could be in Idaho
So Im in 8b Arizona why do they not do one by heat range?
Good question. Sunset magazine has developed a heat rating system because they saw a need too.
I thought hardiness zones were useful in knowing when you can directly sow seeds and when to start seeds for your vegetable garden. Is that not true? On the back of most commercial seed packs it tells you when to plant outdoors according to your zone.
Hardiness zones aren't helpful for when to start seeds. Use your last frost date for that. Those charts on seed packets are a general guide but not very accurate.
@@GardenerScott Thanks
Are there any zones at the opposite end of the spectrum that address average high temperature? Thanks!
Sunset magazine has a zone system that takes highs into account, but nothing from the USDA,
@@GardenerScott Thanks! I live in a hot area and the ability to also thrive in the heat is important where I am. Love the channel!
Please do another video where this one left off. Hope do I determine my season length? Are you saying I can plant seeds in my soil now? If so, which ones? I have always planted per seed packet instructions and most longer growing items don’t get to maturity before snow hits. I’m in zone 5b in NY.
I am planning a follow-up video next month to discuss season length. The growing season for most vegetable garden plants run from the last frost date in spring to the first frost date in fall. There are very few seeds you can probably do now. You have to look at your last frost date to determine when to start seeds outdoors.
Time to put that marginata to rest, lol 😂