Mid-Atl: New USDA Hardiness Zone Map - 2012

**sfg4uKim** 1/25/2012, 10:17 pm

Thanks to camprn for alerting me to this.

The USDA unveiled its new hardiness zone map today. My zone has changed from 7a to 7b. How about you?

2012 USDA Hardiness Zone Map

Patty from Yorktown 1/25/2012, 10:44 pm

I changed my zone as well. The chart reads 8a for my Yorktown Virginia Square Foot Garden. I read a snippet of an article that said zone charts and rainfall charts would be changing soon. Something about the charts being a 30 year average and the 1970's had strange weather (among other things.) Wonder what will grow in my warmer garden?

Patty from Yorktown

yolos 1/25/2012, 10:59 pm

I also changed - from 7B to 8A - Brooks, Ga.

EatYourVeggies 1/25/2012, 11:28 pm

I left home for a meeting earlier today from 8a, and returned to 8b Shocked

UnderTheBlackWalnut 1/26/2012, 12:56 am

I didn't feel a disturbance in the force but apparently I've changed from 5b to 6a but I only found that out from the zip code finder. If I look at the map, Springfield, IL is right on the line.... Smile

billamj 1/26/2012, 9:27 am

We got to move from zone 6 to zone 6b. Was it something I said? Shocked

staf74 1/26/2012, 9:32 am

Mid-Atl: New USDA Hardiness Zone Map - 2012 641297

Looks like 7b to 8a for me.

**RoOsTeR** 1/26/2012, 9:46 am

I think I'm still 5b. Or is it 5a. Or 4 Razz

I look to be about smack dab in the middle of three.

jk. my zip puts me in 5b still. Very Happy

boffer 1/26/2012, 9:52 am

Patty from Yorktown wrote: ...Wonder what will grow in my warmer garden?...

Not to be a party pooper, but the zones have nothing to do with summer temps. From the USDA's web site:

(The zones) do not reflect the coldest it has ever been or ever will be at a specific location, but simply the average lowest winter temperature for the location over a specified time. Low temperature during the winter is a crucial factor in the survival of plants at specific locations.

**camprn** 1/26/2012, 10:25 am

nKedrOoStEr wrote:I think I'm still 5b. Or is it 5a. Or 4 I look to be about smack dab in the middle of three.

jk. my zip puts me in 5b still.

If I was there at your elevation I would just be on the safe side and go with hardiness zone 4. Than is if I was plantin' cold hardy shrubs and stuff... Very Happy

Patty from Yorktown 1/31/2012, 10:26 pm

Ok, so now I have had a week or so for my new zone to settle in and it occurs to me to check the frost free date. Ackkkk, they moved it up by more than 2 weeks and I do not have my seed order in yet. Poor planning on my part. I guess I will be starting seeds a lot sooner than I thought.

Patty in warmer Yorktown

miinva 1/31/2012, 11:41 pm

My zip code shows 7A, which is the same as it was before, I believe.

jpatti 2/1/2012, 3:41 pm

I'm not entirely sure why we even use zones here. Everything in SFG is based on last frost date or first frost date, so zones are kinda irrelevant unless looking at setting up perennial beds of some sort.

My average last frost date is April 26 and average first frost date is Oct 25. All my seeding, planting, harvesting dates are based on those.

**Furbalsmom** 2/1/2012, 3:53 pm

jpatti wrote:so zones are kinda irrelevant unless looking at setting up perennial beds of some sort.

Mid-Atl: New USDA Hardiness Zone Map - 2012 833560

Zones are useful for limited crops such as artichokes, asparagus and strawberries.

jpatti 2/2/2012, 7:38 am

Furbalsmom wrote:
jpatti wrote:so zones are kinda irrelevant unless looking at setting up perennial beds of some sort.

Zones are useful for limited crops such as artichokes, asparagus and strawberries.

As I said, perennial beds.

Just... every gardening forum in the world is based on zones, seems to me that a SFG one would be based on frost dates, since the book was.

But my memory may be off, I only read the new book once. It's the original I reread each year.

Weatherkid 2/2/2012, 11:52 am

I'm still on the border of 6b and 7a... but I did notice that some places in the mountains in west Frederick County have been made zone 7a. I know for a fact that they are always colder than we are. I wonder how accurate those maps are. All the same, I think it's cool looking up places and seeing the variations around me.

Tuxdad 2/26/2012, 9:48 am

From the looks of it.. I think I'm in either 6b or 7a..

Shades are a bit too close together Embarassed

for these old eyes...

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