Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
Guinea grass (zones 9-13) does not overlap with Tennessee's zone range (6a-8a). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
One zone short — what would close it
Guinea Grass is hardy to zone 9, and the warmest ground in Tennessee is zone 8 — 1 zone short. Planted in open ground it will not survive a Tennessee winter. To grow it here, grow guinea grass 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 9-13 (plant) against 6-8 (Tennessee). 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.
Tennessee spans zones 6a-8a, 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 guinea grass against your land's actual soil, sun, and frost.
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Zone Comparison
Guinea Grass Needs
- USDA Zones: 9-13
- Frost-Free Days: 70+
- Sun: Part Sun
Tennessee Has
- USDA Zones: 6a-8a
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Mar 21 - Mar 29
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Nov 5 - Nov 12
- Annual Rainfall: 45-55 inches
- Common Soils: Silt loam, Clay loam, Limestone-derived
Plant Zone Range (zones 9-13)
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 Guinea Grass in Tennessee
The frost window
Across Tennessee, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Mar 21 and Mar 29, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 5 and Nov 12 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 221-day window you can count on — up to 236 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
Guinea Grass is frost-tender — its listed minimum temperature is 42.8°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
Guinea Grass is direct-sown where it grows rather than started under cover, so there is no seed-tray head start to bank — Tennessee'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 — Johnson 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.
Growing Season Fit
The zone check says guinea grass does not survive a Tennessee 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 Tennessee under protection.
Frost-free days
Guinea Grass wants 70+ frost-free days; a typical Tennessee site sees ~230 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). That leaves comfortable headroom for succession planting.
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
Guinea Grass tolerates a wide pH range (pH 3.5-8.4) — 4.9 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Tennessee. 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 5 and 7 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Tennessee soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Tennessee site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Your land, not the state average
Tennessee's soils run mostly silt loam, but SSURGO maps the series, texture, and drainage under your exact parcel. Guinea Grass needs about 59 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 guinea grass performs.
Check your parcel → Source: USDA NRCS SSURGO.
Plant pH and drainage requirements from USDA PLANTS Database. Tennessee soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Guinea Grass in Tennessee — Quick Answer
- Verdict: Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
- Plant Zones: 9-13 (USDA PLANTS Database)
- State Zones: 6a-8a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023)
- Growing Season: 28°F hard freezes about Mar 21 - Mar 29 to Nov 5 - Nov 12 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020)
What Else to Consider for Guinea Grass in Tennessee
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Tennessee growers also need to think about:
Heavy clay soils in the Nashville Basin
High humidity promotes disease in summer
Variable spring weather with late frost risk
Growing guinea grass here specifically
Guinea Grass needs pH 3.5–8.4; Tennessee's dominant silt 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 guinea grass's 3.5–8.4 range. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Tennessee grower, not just guinea grass — is covered on the Tennessee growing guide.
Timing shifts within Tennessee
Tennessee isn't one climate. In Johnson County, the last hard freeze (28°F) holds until about Apr 14 — roughly 21 days later than the recorded state median — so plant guinea grass to your county's window, not the statewide date.
Guinea Grass needs about 70 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Johnson County — Tennessee’s shortest season at 193 frost-free days — clears that by 123 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in Tennessee. What varies is your own parcel.
Across Tennessee’s 95 counties the frost-free season runs from 193 days in Johnson County to 266 days in Shelby County — a spread of 73 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Tennessee county sees 230 frost-free days, leaving guinea grass about 160 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"). Guinea Grass's 70-day requirement: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database (minimum frost-free days). A parcel report resolves your address's own frost dates.
Tennessee Cooperative Extension
For Tennessee-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for guinea grass, the canonical source is UT Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Common Questions About Growing Guinea Grass in Tennessee
When can I plant Guinea Grass in Tennessee?
Tennessee's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Mar 21 and Mar 29, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 5 and Nov 12 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Guinea Grass is frost-tender — its listed minimum temperature is 42.8°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 Guinea Grass grown in across Tennessee?
Tennessee spans USDA hardiness zones 6a-8a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Guinea Grass carries a range of zones 9-13, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Tennessee site have?
A typical Tennessee site sees ~230 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Guinea Grass needs 70+ 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 Johnson, the freeze-free season runs shorter than the state average, so verify your own county's window.
How should I amend the soil for Guinea Grass in Tennessee?
Guinea Grass tolerates pH 3.5-8.4 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 4.9-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Tennessee site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Guinea Grass actually grow on my specific land in Tennessee?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores guinea grass 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 Tennessee
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores guinea grass against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Tennessee guinea grass averages can't show:
We read public map data around Tennessee — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Tennessee guinea grass average
Explore More
Growing guides for guinea grass
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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