Newly developed plants don’t have a hardiness zone since few people have grown it.

If you go to 5 websites and check on the plant hardiness numbers you are likely to get 2 or 3 different answers. Their effective zone is actually warmer due to snow cover.

Who determines the hardiness zone for a particular plant? If a plant is zone 8 it will tolerate temperatures to -18 degrees Celsius or 10 degrees Fahrenheit. The story and results are fully documented on my GardenMyths blog in a post called  Hardiness of Liriope ‘Super Blue’. Use them as a guide, and over time, experience will tell you if you are in a slightly warmer or colder zone.

In theory this makes the maps more accurate than the USDA zone maps. Planting zones are areas you can find on a growing zone map that show exactly which plants are best suited to thrive in your given area, or zone. It really makes sense to stick to the US system or at least keep their numbering system, because that is the information you will find in most reference material, including the internet. It’s official name is the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.

The eastern part receives a fair amount of raifall but toward the north and west it becomes drier. Straw Bale Garden vs Traditional In-ground Garden – A Critical Comparison, A Tomato Myth is Born – More About Tomato Ripening.

© CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. To find out more about hardiness or horticultural zones and how South Africa compares to USA and other zones, visit this link. We test the latest gardening tech. Here are maps for some other regions/countries: Planting zone for Africa: http://www.backyardgardener.com/zone/africa.html, Planting zone for Australia: http://www.bom.gov.au/jsp/ncc/climate_averages/temperature/index.jsp?maptype=3&period=an#maps, Planting zone for China: http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=9815&page=2, Planting zone for New Zealand: http://liddlewonder.nz/zones.php, Planting zone for Ukraine: http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=9815&page=3. The USDA Hardiness Zone Map divides the United States and Canada into 13 zones, with Zone 1 being the most northern and Zone 13 the most southern. Each zone is further divided in half to have an ‘a’ and a ‘b’, with ‘a’ being 5 degrees colder than ‘b’. These zones are provided as a guide and exceptions do occur, e.g. Published zone maps don’t take this into consideration. The plant in the first picture in this post is Berkheya purpurea.

The map is also a good way to compare your climate with the ideal climate for a particular plant you're interested in growing. For instance zones 4a and 4b in the US will almost always get snow every year, while zone 8a and 8b will likely never see snow. 1) Photo Source: all pictures by Robert Pavlis.

For my area, vegetables like radishes, lettuce, peas and tomatoes are all likely to thrive when cared for correctly. Prior to the 2000 update, the Canadian system used a different number scheme.

The map is based on the average annual minimum winter temperature, and is divided into 10-degree zones (F). If they all match, I am fairly confident in the numbers.

Let me know in the comments below if there are maps for other countries.

Many subtropical plants grow well here. South Africa does not have widely recognised horticultural zones as does the United States of America.

isolated frost pockets in Zone 1 and frost free areas in Zones 4 and 5 do occur.

I know my planting zone is 5, or more precisely 5b.

Some plants might not survive over winter! Planting zones, also called hardiness zones and gardening zones, help you select plants that will grow in your climate. You can adjust for a lot of factors in your garden, like shade, water drainage or soil quality. The soils are generally poor and mainly derived from the Table Mountain group (Cape Supergroup), which also limits the choice of plants in this zone. Snow cover also plays a big role. Still, they can be a handy resource for deciding what to plant in your garden. The latest map is from 2000 and it can be found here: http://www.agr.gc.ca/atlas/agpv?webmap-en=78529700717d4cab81c13e9f9404ef10&webmap-fr=c1b454842d3748b0bb0807d7817d34c2  Unfortunately, these maps use stupid colors so it is hard to tell one zone from another.

If you like this post, please share ....... Error type: "Forbidden". Discuss: Why knowing your USDA hardiness zone is crucial for keeping plants alive. Still, a little bit of planning goes a long way, and you should consider the size of your garden, the richness of your soil and the hardiness zone of the region where you live. Each zone is divided based on -10 degree variances.

How much cold can Berkheya purpurea take in winter? Winnipeg and Richmond BC were not the same. For example, Seattle and Tuscon are are both in Zone 8, though there's a large difference between the coastal, rain-heavy climate of Seattle and drier, inland Tuscon. How does your smart garden grow? Sometimes the zones are determined by testing plants in various regions.

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If you'd like to view the zone for your area, you can use the USDA's interactive map to find the plant hardiness zone in your exact location.

If you have warm spells in winter, and winter rains, it can spell death to a plant, even though it should be hardy in your area. Some of my shrubs die back to the ground every winter, while in town they don’t. With this information I can look up the plant on the internet to find it’s hardiness zone. Other sites overstate the hardiness – are they trying to sell more plants? Will Methanol Foliar Spray Grow Bigger Plants? Your garden's orientation to the sun and shading plays a huge role in the life cycle of your plants.

Dig a hole, plant a seed and water it. It looks more like a 5b plant and other growers are now reporting similar findings. The first column is the old zone number, the second the new and current zone number. Based on the USDA Hardiness Zone Map, this interactive version covers the country of United Kingdom which ranges from Zone 6b to Zone 10b.

Enter your email address to receive notice of new blog postings. The map is based on the average annual minimum winter temperature, and is divided into 10-degree zones (F). So a plant might have a zone range of 4 to 8 (usually written as 4-8).

Rainfall is mainly in summer with dry winters but in the north-western area the rainfall is very low which should also be taken into account when selecting plant material. Error message: "The request cannot be completed because you have exceeded your, Copyright © 2020 Garden Fundamentals |

Close to the coast wind is stronger, especially the prevailing summer southeasterly winds. However, your zone might be different than a garden up the road if one of the two sites is located at a higher elevation or is more exposed to winds. It is clear that not all parts of Canada are harmonized with the US system – you need to check this for yourself.

North of here, it is certainly colder, but they have reliable snow cover. Be careful with older Canadian information. Most zones have very different weather conditions from the others. If you live in a warm planting zone like 10, then this plant will also not do well because of the heat. Hardiness Zones, Gardening Zones, Growing Zones and Plant Zones refer to defined geographic regions that can support specific plants, flowers and trees. The smaller the number, the colder the climate – just like a thermometer. The coastal city of Port Elizabeth and adjacent regions are also subject to strong winds which should be taken into account when selecting plant material. The USDA has created a number of plant zone maps over the years, with the latest one being released in 2012. They will almost certainly know their planting zone and if you live nearby – yours will be the same. The most used planting zones for Europe follow along the same lines as the USDA Plant Hardiness Zones. It doesn't always mean you can't grow that plant in your area. Planting zones are not perfect, but they are a great help in selecting plants – make use of them. I live just outside of a city of over 100,000 people. While you might not notice big differences in which plants can survive in two zones so similar, it's still important to know where your garden falls on the map.

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They gave me 12 plants and asked that I grow them in various locations at Aspen Grove Gardens – my private garden. Podcast with Maritime Gardening – All About Ants, Podcast With Joe Gardener – Products You Don’t Need to Buy & Why, Neem Oil Insecticide and Fungicide For Plants. One tool for choosing plants wisely is the United States Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone map. You've probably run across the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map or references to it in garden magazines and books, as well as on seed packets or in plant catalogs. This region is subject to light frost but in the northern and coastal regions of Namaqualand frost is absent or very light.

Consider the above picture, Berkheya purpurea, from my garden.

My neighborhood sits in Zone 6b, but the part of town just a little farther west is categorized as Zone 7a.

The soils are generally rich in minerals and many subtropical plants grow well here provided that they are watered sufficiently and planted in areas where frost is light.

The USDA Hardiness Zone Map divides the United States and Canada into 13 zones, with Zone 1 being the most northern and Zone 13 the most southern.

USDA Planting Zones.

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