Like people, plants have a preference for where they want to live. Some of us love experiencing all 4 seasons, while others are happiest when the temps don’t vary too much. Some plants are super hardy and can grow just about anywhere. Others want the temperature to be “just right.”
Hardiness Zones help identify which plants you can grow where. Some plants cannot withstand the cold winters of the Northern states and others have a hard time with the heat and humidity of the Mid-Atlantic or South or the dry heat of the Southwest. Fortunately, there is a super-easy way to know which plants will do best in your yard. All you need is to know your Hardiness Zone.
Your Hardiness Zone will likely range from 4a to 10b, which is the general zone range of the United States. Your hardiness zone will have a number followed by a letter. The important part of this code is the number. For example, if your zone is 6a, you can just consider yourself in “Zone 6.”
You’ll find the hardiness zone information in our plant descriptions. For example, if the description says the plant be grown in Zone 5-7 and you are in Zone 6, the plant will be happy in your zone. However, if you are in Zone 8, the plant would likely be stressed and either perform poorly or not survive.
Selecting plants in your hardiness zone will help to insure that your plants thrive and are easy to care for.