Carob is a tree, a long-term addition to the landscape. It's hardy across USDA zones 9 through 11, stands up to deer and handles dry spells once it's established. Its fall flowers are a modest draw for honeybees, even though the fruit is the prize.
Carob — the short answer
Carob: grown in zones 9–11, full sun, pH 5–9.
- USDA zones
- 9–11
- Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation
- Soil pH
- 5–9
- FAO ECOCROP
- Sun
- Full Sun
- Growable Ground Plant Database
- Frost-kill temp (growing season)
- 32°F
- FAO ECOCROP
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — each tile names its own row's source, because per-field provenance varies.
Score Carob on your exact land.
Zone averages can't see the slope, soil, frost, and sun that decide whether carob actually takes — and those shift from one yard to the next. Enter your address and we'll score carob against your land's real conditions.
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What Carob is
Carob grows as a perennial and reaches around 35 feet at maturity. It blooms red in fall. It's also deer-resistant.
How to grow Carob
Carob grows in USDA zones 9 through 11. Carob does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 5 to 9, on well-drained ground. It needs around 3,500 growing degree days to mature, a growing season of at least 210 frost-free days, and about 200 hours of winter chill to set fruit, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
9-11
USDA PHZM 2023
Soil pH
5 - 9
FAO ECOCROP
Sun
Full Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost Kill Temperature
32°F
Where cold starts killing growing tissue. Not a winter-survival floor — a dormant perennial takes far colder, which its hardiness zone answers.
FAO ECOCROP
Minimum Growing Temperature
50°F
Below this it stops growing rather than dies — a pace limit, not a survival limit.
FAO ECOCROP
GDD Required
3500+
Growing degree-days of accumulated warmth it needs to mature — humid summers reach this faster than cool coastal ones.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Mature Height
35 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Chill Hours
200+
Winter hours below ~45°F it needs to fruit — too-mild winters can leave it bloom-shy.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
210+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Plant it right
Set carob in full sun with well-drained soil. Many fruit trees need a second variety nearby to pollinate — check before you plant just one.
Match the soil
Carob prefers pH 5 to 9 (FAO ECOCROP). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. A 2–3 inch mulch layer holds moisture without waterlogging.
Be patient, then harvest
Prune annually while the tree establishes; fruit trees reward patience with years of harvest. Local Extension guides publish per-cultivar bearing-age tables.
Where Carob thrives
Carob is hardy across USDA zones 9 through 11. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.
A USDA zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme winter minimum, so zones 9–11 spans average winter lows from 20°F to 50°F (USDA PHZM 2023). Across the 50 states and DC, that band covers none outright but splits 17 down the middle — and which side of that line your land sits on changes the answer.
Zones 9–11·Where Carob growsOpen map →
This map is derived from the USDA ARS / PRISM Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023) and is not the official USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.
Where Carob stands, state by state
Carob is rated for zones 9–11 — a cold floor USDA puts at 20 to 30°F. Across the 50 states and DC, 0 sit fully inside that band, the line runs through 17 more, and 34 sit outside it — and inside every split state, the same line runs on at county grain.
The line runs through
17 states
- Alaska · zones 1a-9a
- California · zones 4b-11a
- Nevada · zones 4a-10a
3 of 17 shown
Carob’s band covers part of each of these states — which side of the line your county sits on changes the answer, and each state page draws it.
State zone extents: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so a state that splits the band contains the boundary — its own page draws the county line, and a parcel report resolves which side your land sits on.
What grows around Carob
Growing guides for carob
In rotation planning, carob counts as a Legume — beds recover best when legume crops don’t follow each other in the same spot year over year. (Growable Ground derivation — crop-rotation group from botanical family)
Related plants in fruit
Good to know
Good news for pet owners — carob isn't known to be toxic to dogs or cats. (Source: ASPCA.)
Carob offers low value to bees and other pollinators.
Before you harvest carob, know your soil
Anything you grow to eat takes up what's in the ground it grows in, so it's worth knowing what's documented near you before you plant carob for food. Our free screen reads 9 federal source types across roughly 1.8M indexed sites and shows which sit near your address and which way they drain. It's a screening estimate from public records and proximity — not a soil test — so a nearby record means a soil test is worth it, not that your soil is unsafe.
Your land is one point inside Carob's range
This page resolves to the species. Your state page draws the county line, and a report reads the parcel — the soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost dates on your exact ground, which no species average can see.
See if Carob will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether carob actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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How we know this about Carob
The figures above are cited per row, not per site: the pH band names this plant’s own source column, the three temperature figures each carry their own, and days-to-maturity cites the publication that actually lists it. All of it comes from the Growable Ground Plant Database — a compilation over FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources, published openly with per-field provenance.
Grounded inUSDA PLANTS Database•USDA PHZM•ASPCA
Frequently asked questions
Can I grow Carob in my zone?
Carob grows in USDA hardiness zones 9 through 11 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.
When should you plant Carob?
Set carob out in early spring or fall while it's dormant, so the roots establish before the heat of summer. Your local last-frost date — which a Growable Ground report pulls for your exact address — sets the precise window.
How much sun does Carob need?
Carob needs full sun — a spot that catches at least 6 hours of direct summer sun a day. In more shade it still grows, but usually gives a smaller, later crop. The catch is that a yard rarely gets even light everywhere — a fence, the house, or one tall tree can quietly take those hours. A Growable Ground report reads the real sun-hours across your land, canopy and buildings included, so you can pick the brightest bed before you plant.
What soil does Carob need?
Carob prefers soil pH 5 to 9, on well-drained ground (FAO ECOCROP). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Carob attract pollinators?
Yes — carob's flowers are a modest nectar source for honeybees.
Is Carob safe for pets?
Carob is not known to be toxic to dogs or cats based on available data. Always supervise pets around new plantings. (Source: ASPCA.)
Keep exploring Carob
Carob state by state
Every state carob's zone reaches — 8 link straight to that state's carob growing page; the rest open the state's full growing guide.