Planting Zones Explained: Find Your USDA Zone by State
Published On: Dec 19, 2017
Updated On: Aug 31, 2026
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Every plant you buy is making a bet about your winter. Planting zones are how that bet gets settled. If you have ever watched a shrub sail through one January and die in the next, or wondered why your neighbor two towns over can grow something you cannot, the answer usually starts here.
This guide explains what USDA planting zones are, how to find yours in about ten seconds, which zone your state falls in, and what actually grows in each of the 13 zones. All zone information on this page reflects the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map — the current edition, built on weather data from 1991 to 2020. If you learned your zone before November 2023, it may have changed.
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What Is a Planting Zone?
A planting zone — more precisely a plant hardiness zone — is a geographic area defined by one number: the average annual lowest winter temperature. The USDA divides the United States into 13 of them, each covering a 10°F band, and splits each into an "a" and "b" half-zone 5°F apart.
That is the whole idea. Zone 7 means the coldest night of an average winter lands somewhere between 0°F and 10°F. A plant rated to Zone 7 has a track record of surviving that. A plant rated to Zone 9 does not.
Hardiness zones answer one question well and every other question badly. They say nothing about summer heat, rainfall, humidity, soil, or how long your growing season runs. They are the first filter, not the last word.
What Planting Zone Am I In?
The fastest answer is your zip code, not your state. States are large and zones do not respect state lines — Maryland alone runs from Zone 5 in the western mountains to Zone 8 on the lower Eastern Shore.
Look up your planting zone by zip code with our free zone finder. Enter five digits and you will get your exact zone, including the a/b half-zone, plus the plants we carry that are rated for it.
You can also check the official interactive map at the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which lets you search by zip code or click into any state.
Planting Zones by State
If you just want a rough answer, here is the range of USDA zones found in each state on the 2023 map. Most states span several zones, so treat this as orientation and use the zip code lookup for anything you plan to buy.
| State | USDA Zones | State | USDA Zones |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 7–9 | Montana | 3–6 |
| Alaska | 1–8 | Nebraska | 4–6 |
| Arizona | 5–10 | Nevada | 4–10 |
| Arkansas | 7–8 | New Hampshire | 3–6 |
| California | 5–11 | New Jersey | 6–8 |
| Colorado | 3–7 | New Mexico | 5–8 |
| Connecticut | 6–7 | New York | 4–7 |
| Delaware | 7–8 | North Carolina | 6–9 |
| District of Columbia | 7–8 | North Dakota | 3–4 |
| Florida | 8–11 | Ohio | 5–7 |
| Georgia | 7–9 | Oklahoma | 6–8 |
| Hawaii | 8–13 | Oregon | 5–10 |
| Idaho | 3–7 | Pennsylvania | 5–8 |
| Illinois | 5–7 | Rhode Island | 6–7 |
| Indiana | 5–7 | South Carolina | 7–9 |
| Iowa | 4–6 | South Dakota | 4–5 |
| Kansas | 5–7 | Tennessee | 6–8 |
| Kentucky | 6–7 | Texas | 6–10 |
| Louisiana | 8–10 | Utah | 4–9 |
| Maine | 3–7 | Vermont | 4–6 |
| Maryland | 5–8 | Virginia | 5–8 |
| Massachusetts | 5–7 | Washington | 4–9 |
| Michigan | 4–6 | West Virginia | 5–7 |
| Minnesota | 3–5 | Wisconsin | 3–6 |
| Mississippi | 7–9 | Wyoming | 3–6 |
| Missouri | 5–8 |
What the Zone Numbers Actually Mean
Lower numbers are colder. Zone 1 averages a low of -60°F to -50°F; Zone 13 averages 60°F to 70°F. Each step up the scale is 10°F warmer.
The letters matter more than most people expect. Zone 7a bottoms out around 0°F to 5°F, and 7b around 5°F to 10°F. Five degrees is the difference between a Southern Magnolia that sails through winter and one that defoliates.
A plant tagged "Zones 5–9" is telling you two things: it needs cold hardiness down to Zone 5, and it will struggle in the heat past Zone 9. Both ends are real limits.
What Hardiness Zones Do Not Tell You
Your zone is a starting point. These four factors routinely override it:
- Wind. Exposed sites dry evergreens out over winter and snap branches. In a windy microclimate, favor tough, low-profile shrubs and evergreens over anything brittle or top-heavy.
- Urban heat. Cities run warmer than the countryside around them. A downtown lot can behave a full half-zone warmer than a rural property twenty miles away.
- Rainfall and drainage. Cold wet soil kills far more plants than cold air does. Most winter losses in heavy clay are drainage failures wearing a hardiness costume.
- Humidity. Coastal California and central Florida share zones and share almost nothing else. Humidity drives fungal pressure and changes which varieties hold up.
All 13 USDA Planting Zones
Here is every zone with its temperature range, where it falls on the 2023 map, and what we would plant there. We grow and ship for zones 3 through 10, so those entries carry our collections; the coldest and warmest zones are here for reference.
Zone 1: -60°F to -50°F
The coldest zone in the country, confined to interior and northern Alaska. Native birch, aspen and a handful of extremely hardy rhododendrons are the practical palette. Nothing we ship is rated this cold.
Zone 2: -50°F to -40°F
Also Alaska only — interior valleys, with 2b reaching parts of the coast. Paper birch, American elm and eastern larch are the classic survivors here.
Zone 3: -40°F to -30°F
Where it is: Far northern Minnesota, northern North Dakota, northern Montana, the northern tip of Maine, and high elevations in the Rockies. On the 2023 map, a good deal of what used to read Zone 3 now reads Zone 4.
What to plant: Colorado Blue Spruce, Annabelle Hydrangea, Miss Kim Lilac and Goldsturm Black Eyed Susan. Browse Zone 3 trees, Zone 3 shrubs and Zone 3 perennials.
Zone 4: -30°F to -20°F
Where it is: Much of Minnesota and Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the Dakotas, Montana, northern Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, the Adirondacks, and the mountain west through Wyoming, Idaho and Colorado.
What to plant: Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry, Dwarf Alberta Spruce, Limelight Hydrangea and Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass. Browse Zone 4 trees, Zone 4 shrubs and Zone 4 perennials.
Zone 5: -20°F to -10°F
Where it is: Iowa, Nebraska, northern Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, southern Wisconsin and Michigan, much of upstate New York, western Massachusetts, northern Pennsylvania, the Colorado Front Range, and the western Maryland mountains.
What to plant: Thuja Green Giant Arborvitae, Eastern Redbud, Ruby Spice Summersweet and Standing Ovation Little Bluestem. Browse Zone 5 trees, Zone 5 shrubs and Zone 5 perennials.
Zone 6: -10°F to 0°F
Where it is: Kansas, Missouri, central Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, most of Pennsylvania, northern New Jersey, Connecticut, eastern Massachusetts, the western Maryland and western Virginia uplands, plus inland Washington and Oregon, Nevada and Utah.
What to plant: October Glory Maple, Otto Luyken Cherry Laurel, Endless Summer Hydrangea and Big Blue Liriope. Browse Zone 6 trees, Zone 6 shrubs and Zone 6 perennials.
Zone 7: 0°F to 10°F
Where it is: The mid-Atlantic core — most of Maryland, Delaware and Virginia, southern New Jersey, southeastern Pennsylvania, and Long Island — plus the North Carolina piedmont, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, northern Texas and the higher elevations of New Mexico and Arizona. Our own nursery in Bowie, Maryland sits in Zone 7b.
What to plant: Dynamite Crape Myrtle, Skip Laurel, Pink Muhly Grass and Phenomenal Lavender. Browse Zone 7 trees, Zone 7 shrubs and Zone 7 perennials.
Zone 8: 10°F to 20°F
Where it is: Coastal North Carolina, most of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi, northern Louisiana, central Texas, Maryland's lower Eastern Shore and southeastern Virginia — and, on the other side of the country, much of western Oregon and western Washington.
What to plant: Nellie Stevens Holly, Red Tip Photinia, Dwarf Gardenia Radicans and Pink Muhly Grass. Browse Zone 8 trees, Zone 8 shrubs and Zone 8 perennials.
Zone 9: 20°F to 30°F
Where it is: Northern and central Florida, the Gulf Coast, southern Louisiana, coastal and southern Texas, coastal California, the Arizona low desert and southwestern Oregon. Notably, the 2023 map now puts Seattle and Portland in Zone 9a.
What to plant: Blue Ice Cypress, Frost Proof Gardenia, Red Yucca and Variegated Liriope. Browse Zone 9 trees, Zone 9 shrubs and Zone 9 perennials.
A shipping note: Zone 9 stretches from Florida to coastal California, and we ship live plants to 34 states across the eastern and central U.S., reaching as far west as Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. The Gulf Coast and Florida are covered; the West Coast and Southwest are not. See where and when we ship.
Zone 10: 30°F to 40°F
Where it is: Southern Florida, the southern tip of Texas, coastal Southern California, and the Phoenix and Tucson low desert. Frost is occasional rather than annual.
What to plant: Italian Cypress, Chicago Hardy Fig, Dwarf Gardenia Radicans and Mexican Feather Grass. Browse Zone 10 trees, Zone 10 shrubs and Zone 10 perennials.
Same shipping caveat as Zone 9, only sharper: in Zone 10 we reach Florida and south Texas, not California or Arizona. See where and when we ship.
Go deeper: Grow Zone 10 Planting Guide and Best Trees for Zone 10.
Zone 11: 40°F to 50°F
In the continental United States, Zone 11 is essentially the Florida Keys and the extreme southern tip of the Florida peninsula, along with scattered urban-heat pockets on the Southern California coast. This is a common point of confusion: most of the Los Angeles and San Diego basins are Zone 10a or 10b, not 11. Agaves, aloes and agapanthus are the signature plants. We do not ship to Zone 11.
Zones 12 and 13: 50°F to 60°F and 60°F to 70°F
Truly tropical, and on the USDA map these appear only in Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Bird of paradise, Hawaiian hibiscus, mango, avocado and coconut palm live here. We do not ship to Zones 12 or 13.
Can You Plant Outside Your Zone?
Yes, with eyes open. Pushing one half-zone warmer than your rating is a normal gamble that experienced gardeners take all the time. Pushing two full zones is a container plant with extra steps.
If you are going to try it, stack the odds: plant on the south or east side of a structure, out of the wind, in soil that drains; get it in the ground early enough to root before winter; and mulch the root zone once the ground has chilled.
The reverse mistake gets less attention and causes just as much loss. A plant rated for Zones 3–7 planted in Zone 9 does not freeze — it slowly declines because it never gets the winter chill it needs.
Shop Plants for Your Grow Zone
Planting Zone Questions, Answered
What is a planting zone?
A planting zone, or plant hardiness zone, is a geographic area defined by its average annual lowest winter temperature. The USDA divides the United States into 13 zones, each spanning 10°F, and each split into "a" and "b" half-zones 5°F apart. A plant's zone rating tells you the coldest winter it can reliably survive.
What planting zone am I in?
The most accurate way to find out is by zip code, because zones change within a single state. Use our zone finder or the USDA's interactive map. A state-level answer is only a rough guide — Maryland, for example, contains Zones 5 through 8.
How many planting zones are there?
There are 13 USDA plant hardiness zones, numbered 1 through 13 from coldest to warmest, and each is divided into an "a" and a "b" half-zone for 26 subdivisions in total.
What do the a and b in a planting zone mean?
They split each 10°F zone into two 5°F halves. The "a" half is the colder one. Zone 7a averages a winter low of 0°F to 5°F, and Zone 7b averages 5°F to 10°F. For borderline plants, that five degrees decides the outcome.
Did planting zones change recently?
Yes. The USDA released an updated Plant Hardiness Zone Map in November 2023, replacing the 2012 edition. It is built on weather data from 1991 to 2020 and draws on 13,412 weather stations, up from 7,983. About half the country shifted to the next warmer half-zone, and the other half stayed put. If you last checked your zone before late 2023, check it again.
Can I plant something outside my hardiness zone?
You can, and gardeners do it constantly — but treat one half-zone as the sensible limit for anything you want to keep permanently. Give a borderline plant a sheltered site with good drainage, plant it early enough to root before winter, and mulch the root zone. Plants rated for zones much colder than yours have the opposite problem: they need winter chill they will not get.
Woodie's Take
I have been selling plants in Zone 7b long enough to know that hardiness zones get blamed for a lot of deaths they did not cause. Most of the plants I hear about losing a winter did not freeze — they drowned in cold clay, or went into November with roots that never established, or sat in a wind tunnel between two houses.
So use your zone as the first filter and then keep going. Look at where the water sits after a storm. Look at what your neighbors have that is thriving. And if you are choosing between two plants and one is rated a full zone colder than you need, buy that one. The margin costs you nothing and buys you the winter nobody predicted.