Know Your Climate Zone

This post offers general tips for beginning gardeners in many climate zones. Chicago and suburbs are now in climate zone 6a. If you are in the Chicago area go to our Planting Calendar Climate Zone 6a for links to detailed planting calendars for popular vegetable families. The Chicago area and many regions in the U.S. are in Zone 5b and 6a. Our Planting Calendar for Zone 6a includes tips about planting and harvesting dates and more. Learn how to protect specific crops from temperature extremes and unpredictable weather in our blog post Veggie Temperature Tolerances. Find YOUR climate zone in the Map of U.S. Climate Zones on the USDA website.

Know what your plants need

Understanding the needs of your plants and how to care for them can help ensure a successful harvest. Know the crops that are cold tolerant for planting in spring and fall. Know the crops that need warmth to thrive and are planted in late spring and mid-August. Know how to protect your seeds and seedlings from unexpected dips and spikes in temperature.

How early you can plant in spring depends on the hardiness (cold tolerance) of the vegetables and the climate in your area. Our 9 new Planting Calendar Charts for veggie groups for Zone 6a gives the planting and harvesting dates for popular veggies as well as temperature tolerance and much more.

Follow a planting calendar chart for YOUR “climate zone” to know planting and harvest dates for each crop. The planting dates are based on the date of the average last 32º freeze in your climate zone. The most reliable planting calendars are from YOUR state university agricultural extension offices. Chicago area gardeners can ask questions to the Deep Roots support team or the Chicago Botanic Garden Plant Information Service. But keep in mind that the Botanic Garden doesn’t follow the Deep Roots innovative edible gardening method.

Climate change has made the safe planting date a moving target. It’s unpredictable. It’s helpful to know the lowest safe temperature for each crop. Many crops can be planted before the last frost date. Some crops are more sensitive to cold than others. Know what is the lowest temperature a crop can tolerate, especially at night. Some crops are very sensitive to temperature and some are less sensitive.

USDA Plant Hardiness Zones

Find your local climate zone: Visit the United States Dept of Agriculture (USDA) interactive Plant Hardiness Zones map on their website to find your local climate zone. It looks like the map at the top of this post. On the USDA’s site click on a spot to zoom in or out. The map is divided into 13 zones, each representing a 10-degree Fahrenheit difference in the average annual minimum temperature.  Fast and easy way to find first and last average frost-free dates in your climate zone by entering your zip code. Try this online climate zone search tool on the Morning Chores website.

Know the best crop varieties and pests for your zone. Knowing your zone will help determine which plants are most likely to thrive in your specific geographic area. As a beginning gardener, start by growing the easiest veggies. It's also important to learn local pest management. View Deep Roots blog posts about pests in Zone 6a

Temperature tolerances. It's important to consider the heat and cold tolerances of your plants. Soil temperature is often more important than air temperature. Deep Roots Zone 6a Planting Calendars include best soil temperatures. For example, tomatoes and peppers, thrive in warmer temperatures and may need special attention and care in cooler climates. Other crops, such as kale and collards, can tolerate colder temperatures and may be better suited for cooler zones. See our post about Optimizing Sunlight to learn how to protect crops from extreme temperatures.

Planting calendar tips for beginners

Here are some general tips on how to use your local climate zone calendar effectively. We provide lots more details in our Planting Calendars for Climate Zone 6a.

Understand your climate hardiness zone and your planting calendar before you start planting. Start a small garden and learn more at a comfortable pace.

Determine the first and last average frost-free dates: This information is critical to ensure that you plant at the right time and avoid frost damage to your crops.

Know planting dates for seeds and seedlings (transplants). As a beginner, it's recommended that you buy transplants from your local nursery or garden center. This will help you avoid the challenges of starting seeds indoors or outdoors and also ensures that your plants are healthy and ready to grow. Deep Roots planting calendars include information about direct sowing outdoors, starting seeds indoors and buying seedlings.

Move the transplants (seedlings) you buy to larger pots so you can bring them inside if the temperature goes too low during the day or at night. Watch the temperature fluctuations carefully.

Plant warm-loving vegetables after the magical average frost-free date: Some vegetables, such as tomatoes and peppers, require both warm soil and air temperatures to grow. Wait until two weeks after the average frost-free date to plant these vegetables.

Be prepared for unpredictable weather. Climate change makes planting dates more unpredictable. Make sure to keep an eye on the weather forecast and use techniques like fabric (floating row covers) to protect your plants from unexpected high and low temperatures. while still allowing rain and sun.

Extend your growing season: You can extend your growing season by using season-extending techniques such as floating row covers, hoop houses, and cold frames. In this video learn how to use hoops to protect crops in raised beds from high and low temperatures as well as pests. See our blog post Installing Hoops on Raised Beds.

Check the days to maturity: The planting calendar will include the days to maturity for each vegetable. This information will help you plan your harvest and ensure that you have a continuous supply of fresh produce throughout the season.

High and low temperature tolerance: Some vegetables are more tolerant of high and low temperatures than others. The planting calendar will include this information so that you can choose vegetables that are suitable for your climate.

“Grow Your Own Food” blog posts

See the full list of our Grow Your Own Food blog posts. Each post is assigned ”tags” which are under the post title. If you need a quick answer to a gardening question give us a call or send a text to our customer support team – support[at]deep-roots-project.org AND 708-655-5299.

Deep Roots online store

See our online store for details about prices, ordering and delivery of raised beds, planter boxes, microbe-rich compost, worm castings, leaf mulch and more. We don’t sell traditional soil, since we use 100% compost as our growing medium. Our online store has 2 sections – (1) raised beds and planter boxes and (2) compost, worm castings, fertilizer.

Please contact our customer support team before placing an order online so we can assist you with the details and answer your gardening questions. You can pay by credit card in the store or by check.

(708) 655-5299 and support[at]deep-roots-project.org

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