Planting Zones: What are they and what do they mean?

If you are just diving into gardening/planting, you've probably heard the term "planting zones" or "hardiness zones" tossed around. If you are like me when I first heard these terms, you are severely confused on what these are or what they mean for your planting season. You may even think you don't need to know these because you're just going to plant what you want when you want anyways (ahem, me my first year of planting).

I can assure you, you want to know about zones, especially living in Maine. We don't have a very long growing season here. It runs from around mid-May to mid-October unless you have a greenhouse, indoor growing spaces, or hydroponics and can extend your season. Because our season is so short, you want to make sure you're getting the most out of it that you can and utilizing every tool and tip along the way.

So, what are hardiness zones? They are zones by which gardeners and growers (you and I) can determine which plants are most likely to survive and thrive in our location. They are based on minimum winter temperatures, which if you are from Maine like me, you know we have one of the lowest. Below is the USDA Hardiness Map.

https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/

The map is keyed by color with light purple being the coldest zones and dark orange being the warmest zones. As you can see, Maine is in the purples and blues, which means we have a shorter growing season, and plants that would survive in places all the way from Washington down to Florida would not survive here. Maine itself has 6 different zones: 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, and 6a.

While my town is technically in zone 4b, I'm very close to 5a and 5b, so I can get away with using all three to gauge my planting season and plan my garden. This map is a guideline, not a guarantee. As us Mainers know, our weather can vary significantly. For example, last winter of 2021, it didn't get very cold (hardly ever dropped to single digits let alone below zero). This winter of 2022, it was in the negatives for weeks on end. Temperature changes can affect your gardening season and how well you plants and veggies do. Last years gardening season, we had the warmest June on record, but we also had the wettest July on record, 7.4" to be exact. All this rain basically ruined my gardening season. My zucchini were rotting before they were even ready to harvest, and my onions were so wet, I could never properly dry them out resulting in a shorter storage window. My lavender was also defeated (lavender is technically part of the cactus family and doesn't like to be watered very often).

So, yes. You do want to take the time to know what zone you're in and what can grow best in those zones. Flowers like hostas, coral bells, bleeding hearts, lilies, and poppys (all of which I have in my flower garden) do very well in zone 5b. Veggies and fruits that thrive in this zone are beets, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, onions, peppers, potatoes, squash, apples, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and even peaches (just to name a few).

So, when you're planning your garden and starting your seeds this spring, take a minute to check your zone to figure out how those plants will do and when to start those seeds inside or out. Enjoy!