Have you ever returned from a trip, determined to recreate that tropical vacation vibe in your northern backyard? Or maybe you hope to grow lilacs, like those that filled the vase on your grandmother’s kitchen table—but aren’t sure they’ll flourish in your southern garden. While it’s easy to drool over the latest, greatest plants featured in magazines, catalogs and websites, how do you know which plants will thrive in your area—and which ones will struggle to live up to your expectations?
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For Felder and others who might be interested, the Sustainable Gardening Library’s interactive EcoRegions app combines the USDA Plant Hardiness Zones with the EPA’s Level III North American Ecoregions. The map layers toggle on and off, so you can look at the two maps separately or together. We recommend zooming in to a location before activating the popup, in order to narrow your results. The EPA Ecoregions popups are linked to descriptive information for about 200 different regions and includes climate info, such as average annual precipitation, number of frost-free days, mean annual temperature, etc. It also includes information on soils, hydrology, terrain, vegetation, wildlife, and prior land use.
I also wonder if a plant grown from seed, that can acclimatize from day 1 (in a zone that it might not ideally be matched for), and may survive more readily than the same plant purchased from a garden centre/nursery. Possibly another option for pushing zones.
Good information, I will share with my herb Society-we are always looking for informative, sound information.
What a great post. Good advice for beginners as well as us “experienced “ gardeners..
Great article! Another aspect to consider is the amount of snow cover which acts like a blanket. LOVE my frost proof gardenia…it lives happily in the garage during the winter here in south coast Maine and so worth the effort when in blooms in the summer!
Climate change is having an impact on gardening zones, with many areas experiencing warmer winters and shifts in their hardiness zone. For instance, here in Oregon, we have been seeing hotter and drier summers. Some of our typical go-to plants are under a lot of stress. Going forward, we will have to consider plants that can tolerate more heat and drought than in the past. You mention using a greenhouse in your article for winter shelter, but a greenhouse offers protection from the direct intense heat in the summer too (if using a greenhouse that provides diffuse light, like Solexx ). A greenhouse is a pretty fabulous tool for expanding your growing zone and adding a new microclimate in your backyard. Thank you for an informative and engaging article that all gardening enthusiasts will appreciate!
good insights. most folks aren’t aware that based on just average low winter temperature, most of england – which is on the same latitude as nova scotia – is the same “zone” as mississippi (i garden in both). we need a hardiness map that includes average low temps, sudden temp drops, early and late freezes, hot humid summer nights, rainfall patterns (too much, too little), and clay soils!