Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
beggar's tick (zones 8-11) does not overlap with Colorado's zone range (3b-7b). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
One zone short — what would close it
Beggars Tick is hardy to zone 8, and the warmest ground in Colorado is zone 7 — 1 zone short. Planted in open ground it will not survive a Colorado winter. To grow it here, grow beggars tick in a container and move it under cover for the coldest weeks, or give it a greenhouse.
Season extension and overwintering under cover both work at this margin. How to buy the weeks →
Zone math from 8-11 (plant) against 3-7 (Colorado). Lift modeled by crop_engine Sprint 20B effective_zone_modifier (+2 zones) via api/fast_sections.py Unlock Engine v2.
Your yard isn't the whole zone.
Beggars Tick is grown as an annual, so your winter zone isn't the deciding factor — your frost-free window is. A typical Colorado site runs ~155 frost-free days, but that is a state median, not your yard: slope, trees, and low spots move the last-frost date across a single parcel. Enter your address and we'll score beggars tick against your land's actual frost dates, sun, and soil.
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
No card required · your full report in seconds
Zone Comparison
Beggars Tick Needs
- USDA Zones: 8-11
- Sun: Full Sun
- Picking window: ~90 days of harvest
Colorado Has
- USDA Zones: 3b-7b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 25 - May 19
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Sep 29 - Oct 16
- Annual Rainfall: 7-20 inches
- Common Soils: Sandy loam, Clay loam, Alkaline caliche
Plant Zone Range (zones 8-11)
Preferred Soil pH
Plant data: USDA PLANTS Database / Growable Ground plant catalog. State data: USDA ARS PHZM 2023, NOAA Climate Normals, NRCS SSURGO.
When to Plant Beggars Tick in Colorado
The frost window
Across Colorado, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 25 and May 19, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Sep 29 and Oct 16 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 133-day window you can count on — up to 174 days on a mild site in a kind year. That marks the hard freeze, not the last light frost, so tender transplants usually wait another 2-3 weeks.
Frost tenderness
Beggars Tick is frost-tender — its listed minimum temperature is 50°F (USDA PLANTS Database) — so set plants out two to three weeks PAST your local last hard freeze, not on it and not on the state's earliest date. The 28°F marker above is when killing freezes stop, not when light frost does.
When to start the seed
Beggars Tick is direct-sown where it grows rather than started under cover, so there is no seed-tray head start to bank — Colorado's dates above are the whole calendar for it. That makes the last-freeze date the binding constraint, and a warmer pocket of your own yard is worth more to this crop than it is to a transplanted one.
Timing tuned to sub-state frost dates — Chaffee County, not the statewide average.
Frost window: NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020. Plant timing fields: USDA PLANTS Database. Your site's own frost dates can run earlier or later than the state range — a parcel report pins them down.
Soil + Drainage Fit
Beggars Tick tolerates a wide pH range (pH 3.5-8.5) — 5 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Colorado. A soil test is still worth having, but for what else it tells you about this site, not to clear this plant. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 4.5 and 8 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Colorado soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Colorado site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Your land, not the state average
Colorado's soils run mostly loam, but SSURGO maps the series, texture, and drainage under your exact parcel. Beggars Tick needs about 19 inches of workable depth, so it is that horizon — not the surface — you are testing for. That map unit, not the state average, decides how beggars tick performs.
Check your parcel → Source: USDA NRCS SSURGO.
Plant pH and drainage requirements from USDA PLANTS Database. Colorado soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Beggars Tick in Colorado — Quick Answer
- Verdict: Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
- Plant Zones: 8-11 (USDA PLANTS Database)
- State Zones: 3b-7b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023)
- Growing Season: 28°F hard freezes about Apr 25 - May 19 to Sep 29 - Oct 16 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020)
What Else to Consider for Beggars Tick in Colorado
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Colorado growers also need to think about:
Low annual rainfall (7-20 inches) means irrigation is essential nearly everywhere
High altitude UV and temperature swings stress plants
Very short growing season at elevation (60-90 frost-free days above 8,000 ft)
Alkaline soils (pH 7.5-8.5) limit acid-loving plants without amendment
Growing beggars tick here specifically
Beggars Tick needs pH 3.5–8.5; Colorado's dominant loam soils may or may not deliver that, so your parcel's SSURGO map unit is the real test.
Start with a soil test on your own ground and adjust pH and texture to fit beggars tick's 3.5–8.5 range. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Colorado grower, not just beggars tick — is covered on the Colorado growing guide.
Timing shifts within Colorado
Colorado isn't one climate. In Chaffee County, the last hard freeze (28°F) holds until about Jun 12 — roughly 38 days later than the recorded state median — so plant beggars tick to your county's window, not the statewide date.
County last-freeze dates: NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS (1991-2020), county 28°F freeze (earlier than the folk 32°F "last frost"). A parcel report resolves your address's own frost dates.
Where in Colorado Beggars Tick Is Zone-Hardy
Beggars Tick is rated for USDA zones 8–11. No Colorado county reaches it. Even Mesa County, the state’s mildest winter at zone 7a, sits below the plant’s zone 8 floor — so in open ground this one needs winter protection here, or a container that comes under cover.
Across those 64 counties Colorado’s winter-low ladder runs from zone 4b in Alamosa County to zone 7a in Mesa County — 2.5 USDA zones of spread, which is 25°F between the two counties’ average coldest night of the year. None of that range reaches the band beggars tick needs, so here the statewide answer really is the answer.
County hardiness zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023, per county. Beggars Tick’s zone 8–11 band: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database. A parcel report resolves your address’s own zone and frost dates rather than its county’s.
Pollinator + Wildlife Value
Beggars Tick draws honeybees, native bees, and butterflies (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, beggars tick can only work that bloom inside Colorado's frost window — roughly 155 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Apr 25 - May 19) and closing at the first (Sep 29 - Oct 16), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Recommended Beggars Tick Varieties for Colorado
Colorado publishes no state variety trial for beggars tick, so we won't invent a "best for Colorado" list. Choose types rated to your USDA hardiness zone (3b-7b), and confirm winter survival and drainage against your own parcel.
Colorado Cooperative Extension
For Colorado-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for beggars tick, the canonical source is Colorado State University Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Beggars Tick native to Colorado?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Beggars Tick as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Colorado's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Colorado natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Colorado growing guide lists USDA-documented natives for the state.
Native-range data: USDA PLANTS Database state-distribution records, accessed 2026-07-01.
Common Questions About Growing Beggars Tick in Colorado
When can I plant Beggars Tick in Colorado?
Colorado's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 25 and May 19, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Sep 29 and Oct 16 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Beggars Tick is frost-tender — its listed minimum temperature is 50°F (USDA PLANTS Database) — so wait two to three weeks past your site's last hard freeze, when light frost has also stopped, before planting out.
What hardiness zone is Beggars Tick grown in across Colorado?
Colorado spans USDA hardiness zones 3b-7b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Beggars Tick carries a range of zones 8-11, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Colorado site have?
A typical Colorado site sees ~155 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Beggars Tick should be matched against that window, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date. In cooler counties like Chaffee, the freeze-free season runs shorter than the state average, so verify your own county's window.
Is Beggars Tick native to Colorado?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Beggars Tick as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Colorado's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Colorado natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Beggars Tick in Colorado?
Beggars Tick tolerates pH 3.5-8.5 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 5-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Colorado site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Beggars Tick actually grow on my specific land in Colorado?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores beggars tick against your address's exact soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost-date data drawn from USDA SSURGO, NOAA, and PRISM — not state averages.
Check your specific parcel in Colorado
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores beggars tick against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Colorado beggars tick averages can't show:
We read public map data around Colorado — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Colorado beggars tick average
Explore More
Growing guides for beggars tick
Analysis by the Growable Ground research team, grounded in USDA PLANTS, USDA NRCS SSURGO, NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020), and named Cooperative Extension sources. How we know →
Cite this dataset
Kirchick, M. (2026). Growable Ground Plant Database [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21435643
Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0. DOI 10.5281/zenodo.21435643
Last updated: