Yes — Strong Match
Egyptian walking onion (zones 3-9) covers every zone Maine contains (3b-7a), so hardiness is not what limits it anywhere in the state.
Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine — the short answer
Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine: hardy in zones 3–9, full sun, against a state median of ~182 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 3-9
- 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
- Maine zones
- 3b-7a
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Apr 16 - May 3 – Oct 10 - Oct 24
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 143 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze
- Days to maturity
- 240 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.
Maine spans zones 3b-7a, but your yard has its own microclimate — slope, trees, and low spots shift frost and sun across a single parcel. Enter your address and we'll score egyptian walking onion against your land's actual soil, sun, and frost.
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Maine is not one climate
A single Maine answer averages 16 counties whose growing seasons are 79 days apart — from 143 frost-free days in Franklin County to 222 in Knox County. Which end of that your land sits nearer changes what egyptian walking onion can finish before the first hard freeze.
The middle half of 16 counties runs 154–191 days, with a median of 178 days — a 79-day span end to end.
Measured across 16 Maine counties. NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze. 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 in Maine Fits Best
Even within Maine's zones 3b-7a, county microclimates differ enough to change what thrives. These counties carry the closest zone match for egyptian walking onion (USDA PHZM 2023):
Zone Comparison
Egyptian Walking Onion Needs
- USDA Zones: 3-9
- Frost-Free Days: 120+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 2.5 ft tall
- Picking window: ~60 days of harvest
- Drought tolerance: Medium
Maine Has
- USDA Zones: 3b-7a
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 16 - May 3
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Oct 10 - Oct 24
- Annual Rainfall: 36-50 inches
- Common Soils: Glacial till, Sandy loam, Rocky loam
Plant Zone Range (zones 3-9)
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 Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine
The frost window
Across Maine, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 16 and May 3, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 10 and Oct 24 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 160-day window you can count on — up to 191 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 hardiness
Egyptian Walking Onion takes cold down to about 23°F before a freeze kills it (FAO ECOCROP), so you can plant on the early side of Maine's window — even a few weeks before the final hard freeze. That is the point where cold damages growing tissue, not a winter-survival floor — an established perennial comes through far colder while dormant, which is what its hardiness zone tells you.
Days to maturity vs. the window
At 240 days to maturity (Growable Ground Plant Database), even Maine's kindest 191-day season runs short — challenging without season extension. An indoor start plus row cover on both shoulders of the season closes the gap.
Timing tuned to sub-state frost dates — Piscataquis 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 egyptian walking onion survives winter here. Whether the season is long enough — and warm enough — is a different question.
Frost-free days
Egyptian Walking Onion wants 120+ frost-free days; a typical Maine site sees ~182 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). That leaves comfortable headroom for succession planting.
Growing degree days
Egyptian Walking Onion needs ~1200 GDD (base 50°F) to ripen. The state median runs ~1450 GDD (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), so Maine'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
Egyptian Walking Onion tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4.5-7.5) — 3 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Maine. 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 6 and 6.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Maine soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Maine site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Your land, not the state average
Whether egyptian walking onion is safe to eat from Maine soil is a block-by-block question, not a town-wide one — 10,103 documented contamination sites mean levels spike on some parcels and not the one next door. Egyptian Walking Onion roots to about 19 inches, so it is the top 19 inches under your address that decide what it takes up, so only a test on your address settles it.
Check your parcel → Source: USDA NRCS SSURGO + EPA/state contamination databases.
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. Maine soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Before you plant egyptian walking onion for food
Anything you grow to eat takes up what is in the ground it grows in, so what is on record near you is worth knowing before egyptian walking onion goes in. What follows is Maine’s documented federal record at state scale — a screening signal, not a soil test, and not a statement about any one lot.
Safe to Grow Here?
What the federal record shows across Maine — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Maine — 10,103 documented sites across 8 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 99 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
Maine carries one of the heavier federal records we track — and that's not a verdict on your yard. Proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis: nothing here says any particular parcel is affected. It does earn one concrete step — before food beds go in the ground, a professional soil test tells you exactly what you're working with, and raised beds with clean imported soil grow well almost anywhere in the meantime.
Severity Distribution
across Maine
Highest-Severity Sites
Know Before You Grow
- •Underground tanks leak petroleum as they age — near a former filling station, test the soil.
- •Near a brownfield, raised beds of imported soil give your food clean ground.
- •On a private well, test for nitrates: above 10 mg/L the water needs treatment before irrigating.
Sources: EPA, USGS — 1.8M documented sites tracked nationwide across 9 federal source types.
What Else to Consider for Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Maine growers also need to think about:
Very short growing season (100-140 frost-free days)
Rocky glacial soils require significant clearing
Harsh winters with heavy snow and ice
Growing egyptian walking onion here specifically
Egyptian Walking Onion grows its edible bulb in the soil itself, so on any of Maine's 10,103 documented contamination sites it can carry up lead you'd then eat.
Keep egyptian walking onion in raised beds of screened clean soil and confirm your parcel's lead level before the first crop. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Maine grower, not just egyptian walking onion — is covered on the Maine growing guide.
Timing shifts within Maine
Maine isn't one climate. In Piscataquis County, the last hard freeze (28°F) holds until about May 15 — roughly 23 days later than the recorded state median — so plant egyptian walking onion to your county's window, not the statewide date.
Egyptian Walking Onion needs about 120 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Franklin County — Maine’s shortest season at 143 frost-free days — clears that by 23 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in Maine. What varies is your own parcel.
Across Maine’s 16 counties the frost-free season runs from 143 days in Franklin County to 222 days in Knox County — a spread of 79 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Maine county sees 182 frost-free days, leaving egyptian walking onion about 62 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"). Egyptian Walking Onion'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
Egyptian Walking Onion 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, egyptian walking onion can only work that bloom inside Maine's frost window — roughly 182 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Apr 16 - May 3) and closing at the first (Oct 10 - Oct 24), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Good to Know Before You Plant Egyptian Walking Onion
Egyptian Walking Onion is listed as toxic to dogs, cats (all) at a moderate level (ASPCA). Most listed plants only cause brief upset — a raised bed or a fenced corner usually keeps curious pets clear. Worth knowing for placement: in Maine this is a one-season plant and the first hard freeze (Oct 10 - Oct 24) takes it down, so the exposure above is a summer-long one rather than something standing in the bed all year.
Maine Cooperative Extension
For Maine-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for egyptian walking onion, the canonical source is UMaine Cooperative Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Common Questions About Growing Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine
When can I plant Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine?
Maine's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 16 and May 3, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 10 and Oct 24 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Egyptian Walking Onion takes cold to about 23°F before a freeze kills it (FAO ECOCROP — the point where cold damages growing tissue, not a winter-survival floor), so plant on the early side of that window — even ahead of the final hard freeze.
Can Egyptian Walking Onion mature before first frost in Maine?
Egyptian Walking Onion needs 240 days to mature (Growable Ground Plant Database), and even Maine's longest typical season runs 191 days (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020) — challenging without season extension. An indoor start plus row cover on both season shoulders closes the gap.
What hardiness zone is Egyptian Walking Onion grown in across Maine?
Maine spans USDA hardiness zones 3b-7a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Egyptian Walking Onion carries a range of zones 3-9, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Maine site have?
A typical Maine site sees ~182 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Egyptian Walking Onion 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 Piscataquis, the freeze-free season runs shorter than the state average, so verify your own county's window.
How should I amend the soil for Egyptian Walking Onion in Maine?
Egyptian Walking Onion tolerates pH 4.5-7.5 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 Maine site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Egyptian Walking Onion actually grow on my specific land in Maine?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores egyptian walking onion 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 Maine
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores egyptian walking onion against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Maine egyptian walking onion averages can't show:
We read public map data around Maine — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Maine egyptian walking onion average
Explore More
Growing guides for egyptian walking onion
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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