Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
centro (zones 10-13) does not overlap with Alabama's zone range (7b-9b). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
One zone short — what would close it
Centro is hardy to zone 10, and the warmest ground in Alabama is zone 9 — 1 zone short. Planted in open ground it will not survive a Alabama winter. To grow it here, grow centro in a hoop house or unheated greenhouse — its modeled 1.5-zone lift covers this gap.
A hoop house or unheated greenhouse is the lift this needs. How a greenhouse changes what you can grow →
Zone math from 10-13 (plant) against 7-9 (Alabama). Lift modeled by crop_engine.GREENHOUSE_ZONE_MODIFIER_BY_SUBTYPE['hoop_house'] (+1.5 zones) via api/fast_sections.py Unlock Engine v2.
Centro in Alabama — the short answer
Centro in Alabama: hardy in zones 10–13, full sun, against a state median of ~266 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 10-13
- 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
- Alabama zones
- 7b-9b
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Feb 24 - Mar 16 – Nov 15 - Nov 28
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 225 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze
- Days to maturity
- 90 days
- Growable Ground Plant Database
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — per-field provenance varies and is published with the dataset.
Your yard isn't the whole zone.
Alabama spans zones 7b-9b, but your yard sits in exactly one — and slope, tree cover, and cold-air pockets nudge it further. Enter your address and we'll score centro against your parcel's actual hardiness, soil, and sun.
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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Alabama is not one climate
Alabama’s winter-low ladder runs across 67 counties, from zone 7.5 in Jackson County to zone 9 in Mobile County. That is 15°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between centro overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.
The middle half of 67 counties runs 8–8.5 zones, with a median of 8.5 zones — a 1.5-zone span end to end.
Measured across 67 Alabama counties. USDA PHZM 2023, per county. Quartiles are order statistics — every figure shown is a value a real county recorded, not an interpolation. Your own site sits somewhere inside this range; a parcel report resolves where.
Where Centro Stands in Alabama
Centro is rated for zones 10–13 — a cold floor USDA puts at 30 to 40°F. No Alabama county sits inside it, so in open ground this is a grown-under-cover plant here rather than a bed plant — which is a statement about Alabama winters, not about centro.
Below the zone 10 floor
67 counties
- Jackson County · zone 7b
- Lauderdale County · zone 7b
- Marion County · zone 7b
3 of 67 shown
Winter cold is the limit here — the same plant works in a container that comes under cover.
County hardiness zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023, per county. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so the floor above is the band the plant's rating denotes, not a single measured kill point. Slope, shelter and cold-air drainage routinely move a site half a zone either way from its county figure — which is the part only your address resolves.
Zone Comparison
Centro Needs
- USDA Zones: 10-13
- Frost-Free Days: 120+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 1.5 ft tall
- Drought tolerance: Medium
Alabama Has
- USDA Zones: 7b-9b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Feb 24 - Mar 16
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Nov 15 - Nov 28
- Annual Rainfall: 50-65 inches
- Common Soils: Red clay, Sandy loam, Alluvial
Plant Zone Range (zones 10-13)
Preferred Soil pH
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources — per-field provenance varies and is published with the dataset. State data: USDA ARS PHZM 2023, NOAA Climate Normals, NRCS SSURGO.
When to Plant Centro in Alabama
The frost window
Across Alabama, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 24 and Mar 16, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 15 and Nov 28 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 244-day window you can count on — up to 277 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.
When to start the seed
Centro is direct-sown where it grows rather than started under cover, so there is no seed-tray head start to bank — Alabama'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.
Winter standing
Alabama runs as cold as USDA zone 7, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for centro, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether centro is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within Alabama; check its hardiness range against that before treating it as long-lived ground.
Timing tuned to sub-state frost dates — Marion County, not the statewide average.
Frost window: NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020. Plant timing fields: Growable Ground Plant Database — frost-free days from FAO ECOCROP, days to harvest from university Extension production guides, and growing-degree-day and chill-hour minimums that are compilation estimates rather than published figures. Your site's own frost dates can run earlier or later than the state range — a parcel report pins them down.
Growing Season Fit
The zone check says centro does not survive a Alabama winter in the ground. The season figures below measure a different question — whether it could finish a season here at all — and they only bear on Alabama under protection.
Frost-free days
Centro wants 120+ frost-free days; a typical Alabama site sees ~266 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). That leaves comfortable headroom for succession planting.
Growing degree days
Centro needs ~3000 GDD (base 50°F) to ripen. The state median runs ~5383 GDD (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), so Alabama's typical season clears that easily.
GDD and chill-hour figures are computed from PRISM 1991-2020 monthly climate normals; frost-free days from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020. Each is the state median across its counties (P25/P75 span the within-state spread). Hardiness-zone range is USDA PHZM 2023.
Soil + Drainage Fit
Centro tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4-7) — 3 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Alabama. 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 4.9 and 5.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Alabama soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Alabama site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Your land, not the state average
SSURGO maps about 14.1% of Alabama as poorly or somewhat-poorly drained, and the class flips parcel to parcel. Centro sits mid-range for drought tolerance, so either extreme can cost you — your soil map unit, not the state average, is the real answer.
Check your parcel → Source: USDA NRCS SSURGO.
Plant pH requirements: FAO ECOCROP and USDA PLANTS, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation. Drainage: FAO ECOCROP, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation. Alabama soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
What Else to Consider for Centro in Alabama
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Alabama growers also need to think about:
Heavy clay soils in the Piedmont region
High humidity promotes fungal diseases
Fire ants are a persistent garden pest
Growing centro here specifically
Centro likes pH 4.0–7.0 and its growing tissue burns around 32°F (FAO ECOCROP), yet neither saves it from wet feet — SSURGO maps about 14.1% of Alabama poorly-drained, where its crown sit and rot.
Set centro high on bermed, grit-amended ground so winter and storm water drain away from the crown. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Alabama grower, not just centro — is covered on the Alabama growing guide.
Timing shifts within Alabama
Alabama isn't one climate. In Marion County, the last hard freeze (28°F) holds until about Mar 28 — roughly 26 days later than the recorded state median — so plant centro to your county's window, not the statewide date.
Centro needs about 120 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Marion County — Alabama’s shortest season at 225 frost-free days — clears that by 105 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in Alabama. What varies is your own parcel.
Across Alabama’s 67 counties the frost-free season runs from 225 days in Marion County to 297 days in Mobile County — a spread of 72 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Alabama county sees 266 frost-free days, leaving centro about 146 days of slack on a typical parcel — room for a second sowing where the season runs long.
County last-freeze dates and frost-free day counts: NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS (1991-2020), county 28°F freeze (earlier than the folk 32°F "last frost"). Centro's 120-day requirement: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database (minimum frost-free days). A parcel report resolves your address's own frost dates.
Pollinator + Wildlife Value
Centro draws honeybees and native bees (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, centro can only work that bloom inside Alabama's frost window — roughly 266 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Feb 24 - Mar 16) and closing at the first (Nov 15 - Nov 28), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Alabama Cooperative Extension
For Alabama-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for centro, the canonical source is Alabama Cooperative Extension System. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Centro native to Alabama?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Centro as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Alabama's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Alabama natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Alabama 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 Centro in Alabama
When can I plant Centro in Alabama?
Alabama's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 24 and Mar 16, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 15 and Nov 28 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Centro, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in Alabama and publishes no fall establishment date for it — check its hardiness range against your own zone before treating it as a permanent planting.
What hardiness zone is Centro grown in across Alabama?
Alabama spans USDA hardiness zones 7b-9b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Centro carries a range of zones 10-13, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Alabama site have?
A typical Alabama site sees ~266 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Centro needs 120+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date. In cooler counties like Marion, the freeze-free season runs shorter than the state average, so verify your own county's window.
Is Centro native to Alabama?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Centro as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Alabama's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Alabama natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Centro in Alabama?
Centro tolerates pH 4-7 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 3-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Alabama site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Centro actually grow on my specific land in Alabama?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores centro 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 Alabama
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores centro against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Alabama centro averages can't show:
We read public map data around Alabama — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Alabama centro average
Explore More
Growing guides for centro
Explore Alabama county by county
Alabama carries 67 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for centro there:
Where else centro grows
Centro's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to Alabama in winter climate where it also has a page, plus the far ends of its range. Each one re-answers the question with that state's own record.
More to grow in Alabama
Alabama has a growing page for 1,034 plants — a rotating sample of the rest of the shelf.
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
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