Good King Henry is an annual multi-use herb, valued for its many uses in the garden. Notably, it grows just as well in a container as in the ground.
Good King Henry — the short answer
Good King Henry: full sun, pH 5.5–8, about 60 days to maturity.
- Soil pH
- 5.5–8
- Growable Ground Plant Database
- Sun
- Full Sun
- Growable Ground Plant Database
- Days to Maturity
- 60 days
- Growable Ground Plant Database
- Frost-kill temperature
- -30°F
- Growable Ground Plant Database
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 Good King Henry on your exact land.
Zone averages can't see the slope, soil, frost, and sun that decide whether good king henry actually takes — and those shift from one yard to the next. Enter your address and we'll score good king henry against your land's real conditions.
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What Good King Henry is
Good King Henry grows as an annual and reaches around a foot at maturity. It blooms green in summer. It's also well suited to containers.
How to grow Good King Henry
Good King Henry is ready to harvest about 60 days after planting. Good King Henry does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 5.5 to 8, on well-drained ground. It needs around 700 growing degree days to mature, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
Data pending
Soil pH
5.5 - 8
Growable Ground Plant Database
Sun
Full Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost Kill Temperature
-30°F
Where cold starts killing growing tissue. Not a winter-survival floor — a dormant perennial takes far colder, which its hardiness zone answers.
Growable Ground Plant Database
Days to Maturity
60 days
Growable Ground plant catalog
GDD Required
700+
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
1 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
0+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Start the season right
Plant good king henry in full sun with at least 6 hours of direct sun. It grows in the cool halves of the year, so sow it in spring or late summer rather than waiting for midsummer heat.
Match the soil
Good King Henry prefers pH 5.5 to 8 (Growable Ground Plant Database). 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.
Harvest at its peak
Harvest the part you grow good king henry for — flower, leaf, or root — at its seasonal peak.
Where Good King Henry thrives
Whether good king henry thrives on a given site comes down to its soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost dates — the conditions that vary parcel to parcel.
What grows around Good King Henry
Growing guides for good king henry
In rotation planning, good king henry counts as a Other — beds recover best when other crops don’t follow each other in the same spot year over year. (Growable Ground derivation — crop-rotation group from botanical family)
Good to know
One caution for pet owners — good king henry is toxic to dogs and cats (mild severity). Keep it out of reach, and call ASPCA Animal Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 in an emergency. (Source: Cornell Poisonous Plants Database.)
Good King Henry isn't classified as a notable pollinator plant in our data — pair it with high-value bloomers nearby to feed bees.
Before you harvest good king henry, 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 good king henry 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 Good King Henry'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 Good King Henry will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether good king henry 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 Good King Henry
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 Good King Henry in my zone?
Zone data for good king henry is being finalized. A Growable Ground report checks your parcel's full suitability against federal soil, climate, and zone data.
How long does Good King Henry take to grow?
Good King Henry is ready to harvest about 60 days after planting. Your local frost dates and soil temperature move that window earlier or later.
When should you plant Good King Henry?
Good King Henry is a cool-season crop, so it goes in during the cool halves of the year — early spring, and again in late summer for a fall planting — rather than at the height of summer heat. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.
How much sun does Good King Henry need?
Good King Henry 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 Good King Henry need?
Good King Henry prefers soil pH 5.5 to 8, on well-drained ground (Growable Ground Plant Database). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Good King Henry attract pollinators?
Good King Henry isn't classified as a notable pollinator plant in our data. Pairing it with high-value bloomers nearby keeps bees and butterflies fed.
Is Good King Henry safe for pets?
Good King Henry is toxic to pets (dogs,cats) with mild severity. Keep it out of reach, and call ASPCA Animal Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 in an emergency. (Source: Cornell Poisonous Plants Database.)