Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
nagoonberry (zones 2-5) does not overlap with Texas's zone range (6b-10b). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
Your yard isn't the whole zone.
Texas spans zones 6b-10b, 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 nagoonberry against your parcel's actual hardiness, soil, and sun.
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Zone Comparison
Nagoonberry Needs
- USDA Zones: 2-5
- Frost-Free Days: 120+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 6 in tall
- Picking window: ~28 days of harvest
- Drought tolerance: Low
Texas Has
- USDA Zones: 6b-10b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Feb 10 - Mar 12
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Nov 18 - Dec 4
- Annual Rainfall: 8-56 inches
- Common Soils: Black clay (Blackland Prairie), Sandy loam, Caliche
Plant Zone Range (zones 2-5)
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 Nagoonberry in Texas
The frost window
Across Texas, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 10 and Mar 12, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 18 and Dec 4 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 251-day window you can count on — up to 297 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
Texas runs as cold as USDA zone 6, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for nagoonberry, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether nagoonberry is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within Texas; check its hardiness range against that before treating it as long-lived ground.
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 nagoonberry does not survive a Texas 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 Texas under protection.
Frost-free days
Nagoonberry wants 120+ frost-free days; a typical Texas site sees ~274 (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
Nagoonberry tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4.5-7.8) — 3.3 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Texas. 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 5.5 and 6.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Texas soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Texas site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Plant pH and drainage requirements from USDA PLANTS Database. Texas soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Nagoonberry in Texas — Quick Answer
- Verdict: Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
- Plant Zones: 2-5 (USDA PLANTS Database)
- State Zones: 6b-10b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023)
- Growing Season: 28°F hard freezes about Feb 10 - Mar 12 to Nov 18 - Dec 4 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020)
What Else to Consider for Nagoonberry in Texas
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Texas growers also need to think about:
Extreme heat (100F+ days) stresses many crops from June through September
Rainfall varies dramatically — 8 inches in west TX to 56 inches in east TX
Heavy black clay (Blackland Prairie) is difficult to work and drains poorly
Flash drought conditions can develop rapidly even in wet years
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Texas grower, not just nagoonberry — is covered on the Texas growing guide.
Timing shifts within Texas
Nagoonberry needs about 120 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Dallam County — Texas’s shortest season at 197 frost-free days — clears that by 77 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in Texas. What varies is your own parcel.
Across Texas’s 254 counties the frost-free season runs from 197 days in Dallam County to 343 days in Kenedy County — a spread of 146 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Texas county sees 274 frost-free days, leaving nagoonberry about 154 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"). Nagoonberry'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
Nagoonberry draws native bees (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, nagoonberry can only work that bloom inside Texas's frost window — roughly 274 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Feb 10 - Mar 12) and closing at the first (Nov 18 - Dec 4), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Texas Cooperative Extension
For Texas-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for nagoonberry, the canonical source is Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Nagoonberry native to Texas?
Nagoonberry is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Texas. It can still earn a place in a Texas garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Texas 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 Nagoonberry in Texas
When can I plant Nagoonberry in Texas?
Texas's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 10 and Mar 12, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 18 and Dec 4 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Nagoonberry, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in Texas 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 Nagoonberry grown in across Texas?
Texas spans USDA hardiness zones 6b-10b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Nagoonberry carries a range of zones 2-5, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Texas site have?
A typical Texas site sees ~274 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Nagoonberry needs 120+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.
Is Nagoonberry native to Texas?
Nagoonberry is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Texas. It can still earn a place in a Texas garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
How should I amend the soil for Nagoonberry in Texas?
Nagoonberry tolerates pH 4.5-7.8 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 3.3-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Texas site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Nagoonberry actually grow on my specific land in Texas?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores nagoonberry 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 Texas
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores nagoonberry against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Texas nagoonberry averages can't show:
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