Labrador tea (Rhododendron groenlandicum), photograph

Can I Grow Labrador Tea in Alaska?

USDA Zones 1a-9a · Plant zone range Data pending

Conditional — Some Areas

Zone data for Labrador tea is not yet available. Growing may be possible depending on your specific location.

Labrador Tea in Alaska — the short answer

Labrador Tea in Alaska: against a state median of ~147 frost-free days.

Alaska zones: 1a-9a; USDA PHZM 2023
Frost window: Apr 16 - May 15 – Sep 24 - Oct 29; NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
Shortest county season: 85 days; NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze

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.

Score your parcel · free

Your yard isn't the whole zone.

Alaska spans zones 1a-9a, 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 labrador tea 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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Alaska is not one climate

Alaska’s winter-low ladder runs across 30 counties, from zone 1 in Yukon-Koyukuk County to zone 7.5 in Chugach County. That is 65°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between labrador tea overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.

1 zonesYukon-Koyukuk County7.5 zonesChugach County

The middle half of 30 counties runs 2.5–5 zones, with a median of 4 zones — a 6.5-zone span end to end.

Measured across 30 Alaska 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.

Zone Comparison

Labrador Tea Needs

USDA Zones: Data pending

Alaska Has

USDA Zones: 1a-9a
Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 16 - May 15
First Hard Freeze (28°F): Sep 24 - Oct 29
Annual Rainfall: 10-160 inches
Common Soils: Permafrost, Glacial silt, Volcanic ash

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 Labrador Tea in Alaska

The frost window

Across Alaska, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 16 and May 15, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Sep 24 and Oct 29 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 132-day window you can count on — up to 196 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.

Winter standing

Alaska runs as cold as USDA zone 1, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for labrador tea, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether labrador tea is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within Alaska; check its hardiness range against that before treating it as long-lived ground.

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.

What Else to Consider for Labrador Tea in Alaska

Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Alaska growers also need to think about:

Extremely short growing season (70-110 frost-free days)

Permafrost prevents deep root growth in many areas

Limited soil development in glacial terrain

What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Alaska grower, not just labrador tea — is covered on the Alaska growing guide.

Pollinator + Wildlife Value

Labrador Tea draws native bees (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, labrador tea can only work that bloom inside Alaska's frost window — roughly 147 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Apr 16 - May 15) and closing at the first (Sep 24 - Oct 29), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020.

Alaska Cooperative Extension

For Alaska-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for labrador tea, the canonical source is UAF Cooperative Extension Service. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.

Common Questions About Growing Labrador Tea in Alaska

When can I plant Labrador Tea in Alaska?

Alaska's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 16 and May 15, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Sep 24 and Oct 29 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Labrador Tea, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in Alaska 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 Labrador Tea grown in across Alaska?

Alaska spans USDA hardiness zones 1a-9a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Labrador Tea carries a range of zones Data pending, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.

How many frost-free days does a typical Alaska site have?

A typical Alaska site sees ~147 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020). Labrador Tea should be matched against that window, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.

Will Labrador Tea actually grow on my specific land in Alaska?

State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores labrador tea against your address's exact soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost-date data drawn from USDA SSURGO, NOAA, and PRISM — not state averages.

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Alaska

State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores labrador tea against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.

Three things about your lot that Alaska labrador tea averages can't show:

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Alaska averages 147Your sun & shade

We read public map data around Alaska — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

25+ data sources read at your address, not the Alaska labrador tea average