Generally — Most Areas
palo verde (zones 8-11) suits most of Hawaii (8b-13a) — zones 8-11 are in range, and the rest of the state is the exception.
Palo Verde in Hawaii — the short answer
Palo Verde in Hawaii: hardy in zones 8–11, full sun.
- Plant zones
- 8-11
- Rated hardy to zone 8 by Cal Poly SelecTree, checked Oct 2026. Ceiling: our plant database.
- Hawaii zones
- 8b-13a
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Killing freeze
- None on record
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020
- Shortest county season
- 365 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.
Your yard isn't the whole zone.
Hawaii spans zones 8b-13a, 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 palo verde against your parcel's actual hardiness, soil, and sun.
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Hawaii is not one climate
Hawaii’s winter-low ladder runs across 5 counties, from zone 9 in Hawaii County to zone 11.5 in Kalawao County. That is 25°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between palo verde overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.
The middle half of 5 counties runs 10–11.5 zones, with a median of 10 zones — a 2.5-zone span end to end.
Measured across 5 Hawaii 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.
Where Palo Verde Stands in Hawaii
Palo Verde is rated for zones 8–11 — a cold floor USDA puts at 10 to 20°F. No Hawaii county sits inside it, so in open ground this is a grown-under-cover plant here rather than a bed plant — which is a statement about Hawaii winters, not about palo verde.
Above the zone 11 ceiling
2 counties
- Honolulu County · zone 11b-12b
- Kalawao County · zone 11b-12b
Warmer than the zone 11 end of its range.
County hardiness zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023, per county. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so the floor above is the band the plant's rating denotes, not a single measured kill point. Slope, shelter and cold-air drainage routinely move a site half a zone either way from its county figure — which is the part only your address resolves.
Zone Comparison
Palo Verde Needs
- USDA Zones: 8-11
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 25 ft tall
- Drought tolerance: High
Hawaii Has
- USDA Zones: 8b-13a
- Hard Freeze (28°F): None on record — year-round season
- Annual Rainfall: 10-400 inches
- Common Soils: Volcanic, Laterite, Coral sand
Plant Zone Range (zones 8-11)
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 Palo Verde in Hawaii
The frost window
Hawaii has none — the 1991-2020 station record carries no 28°F killing freeze, so there is no last-frost date to plant after and no first-frost date to harvest before (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record). The growing season is year-round; what paces planting here is rainfall, heat and elevation, not the calendar.
Establishment timing
As a long-lived plant, palo verde can go in any month here. Aim for the start of your wetter season so it establishes on rainfall rather than on irrigation, and give it a year in the ground before judging it.
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.
Soil + Drainage Fit
Palo Verde likes near-neutral soil (pH 6-8.5). That's the common-ground band across Hawaii's volcanic and laterite — a soil test confirms it for your site. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 6.5 and 7.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Hawaii soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells), excessive (dry/moderately dry). If your Hawaii site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
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. Hawaii soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
What Else to Consider for Palo Verde in Hawaii
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Hawaii growers also need to think about:
Extreme rainfall variation — desert on one side, rainforest on the other
Volcanic soil is nutrient-poor in young flows
Invasive species pressure is severe
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Hawaii grower, not just palo verde — is covered on the Hawaii growing guide.
Where in Hawaii Palo Verde Is Zone-Hardy
Palo Verde is rated for USDA zones 8–11. No single Hawaii county falls inside it: 0 are colder than the plant’s zone 8 floor and 2 are milder than its zone 11 ceiling. A band this narrow straddles the state rather than sitting inside it.
Across those 5 counties Hawaii’s winter-low ladder runs from zone 9a-13a in Hawaii County to zone 11b-12b in Kalawao County — 3.5 USDA zones of spread, which is 35°F between the two counties’ average coldest night of the year. None of that range reaches the band palo verde needs, so here the statewide answer really is the answer.
County hardiness zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023, per county. Palo Verde’s zone 8–11 band: Rated hardy to zone 8 by Cal Poly SelecTree, checked Oct 2026. Ceiling: our plant database.. A parcel report resolves your address’s own zone and frost dates rather than its county’s.
Pollinator + Wildlife Value
Palo Verde draws honeybees and native bees (high value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Palo Verde's flowers are not fenced in by a freeze date here: the 1991-2020 record resolves no 28°F killing frost anywhere in Hawaii, so what limits bloom is the plant's own cycle rather than the calendar.
Hawaii Cooperative Extension
For Hawaii-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for palo verde, the canonical source is UH Mānoa CTAHR Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Palo Verde native to Hawaii?
Palo Verde is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Hawaii. It can still earn a place in a Hawaii garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Hawaii 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 Palo Verde in Hawaii
When can I plant Palo Verde in Hawaii?
Any month — Hawaii records no 28°F killing freeze in the 1991-2020 station record, so there is no last-frost date to wait for and the growing season is year-round (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record). Pace planting by rainfall, heat and elevation instead: the summit country does freeze, and no station up there carries a long enough record to date it.
What hardiness zone is Palo Verde grown in across Hawaii?
Hawaii spans USDA hardiness zones 8b-13a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Palo Verde carries a range of zones 8-11, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Hawaii site have?
A typical Hawaii site sees ~365 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020). Palo Verde 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 Palo Verde native to Hawaii?
Palo Verde is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Hawaii. It can still earn a place in a Hawaii garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
How should I amend the soil for Palo Verde in Hawaii?
Palo Verde prefers pH 6-8.5 and well (dry spells), excessive (dry/moderately dry) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That sits in the common-ground band across Hawaii soils — a 30-minute soil test from a local Extension lab confirms it for your specific site.
Will Palo Verde actually grow on my specific land in Hawaii?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores palo verde 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 Hawaii
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores palo verde against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Hawaii palo verde averages can't show:
We read public map data around Hawaii — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Hawaii palo verde average
Explore More
Growing guides for palo verde
Explore Hawaii county by county
Hawaii carries 5 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for palo verde there:
Where else palo verde grows
Palo Verde's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to Hawaii in winter climate where it also has a page, plus the far ends of its range. Each one re-answers the question with that state's own record.
More to grow in Hawaii
Hawaii has a growing page for 789 plants — a rotating sample of the rest of the shelf.
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