Conditional — Some Areas
pansy is grown in zones 6-10, which reaches only part of New Hampshire (3b-6b): zone 6 are in range, so where you are in the state decides it.
Pansy in New Hampshire — the short answer
Pansy in New Hampshire: grown in zones 6–10, part sun, against a state median of ~171 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 6-10
- Not verified
- New Hampshire zones
- 3b-6b
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Apr 22 - May 4 – Oct 10 - Oct 21
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 145 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze
- Days to maturity
- 70 days
- Growable Ground Plant Database
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.
New Hampshire spans zones 3b-6b, 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 pansy 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.
No card required · your parcel report in seconds — read in full free for your first 14 days
New Hampshire is not one climate
A single New Hampshire answer averages 10 counties whose growing seasons are 43 days apart — from 145 frost-free days in Coos County to 188 in Rockingham County. Which end of that your land sits nearer changes what pansy can finish before the first hard freeze.
The middle half of 10 counties runs 159–183 days, with a median of 169 days — a 43-day span end to end.
Measured across 10 New Hampshire counties. NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze. 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 in New Hampshire Fits Best
Pansy is rated for zones 6–10 — a cold floor USDA puts at -10 to 0°F. Against New Hampshire’s 10 counties that band holds in 3 of them, and the line runs at Hillsborough County (zone 6a), the coldest county still inside it.
Inside zones 6–10
3 counties
0 of 3 shown
Below the zone 6 floor
7 counties
- Coos County · zone 4b
- Carroll County · zone 5a
- Sullivan County · zone 5a
3 of 7 shown
Winter cold is the limit here — the same plant works in a container that comes under cover.
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.
Even within New Hampshire's zones 3b-6b, county microclimates differ enough to change what thrives. These counties carry the closest zone match for pansy (USDA PHZM 2023):
Zone Comparison
Pansy Needs
- USDA Zones: 6-10
- Sun: Part SunWe haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
- Mature size: 9 in tallWe haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
- Picking window: ~90 days of harvestWe haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
- Drought tolerance: LowWe haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
New Hampshire Has
- USDA Zones: 3b-6b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 22 - May 4
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Oct 10 - Oct 21
- Annual Rainfall: 36-50 inches
- Common Soils: Glacial till, Sandy loam, Rocky loam
Plant Zone Range (zones 6-10)
Preferred Soil pH
We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
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 Pansy in New Hampshire
The frost window
Across New Hampshire, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 22 and May 4, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 10 and Oct 21 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 159-day window you can count on — up to 182 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.
When to start the seed
Those dates are when pansy goes out, not when it starts. It is sown under cover about 10 weeks ahead, so counting back from New Hampshire's late-side last freeze of May 4 is what fixes your sowing date — and a yard that clears frost earlier than the state's late date starts earlier still.
Winter standing
New Hampshire runs as cold as USDA zone 3, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for pansy, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether pansy is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within New Hampshire; 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.
Growing Season Fit
Pansy is grown in zones 6–10, which covers part of New Hampshire (3b-6b), not all of it. It is grown as a summer crop, so season length decides it here. New Hampshire's typical season runs ~171 frost-free days against the ~70 pansy needs.
Days to maturity
Pansy matures in ~70 days. We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet. A typical New Hampshire site has ~171 frost-free days, so plenty of room for a second succession.
Growing degree days
Pansy needs ~500 GDD (base 50°F) to ripen. We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet. The state median runs ~1870 GDD (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), so New Hampshire's typical season clears that easily.
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
Pansy likes near-neutral soil (pH 5.4-6.5). That's the common-ground band across New Hampshire's glacial till and sandy loam — a soil test confirms it for your site. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 5.4 and 5.8 — worth knowing before you decide whether a New Hampshire soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your New Hampshire site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, a raised bed lifts the roots above wet ground, or work in compost. pH range, preferred pH and drainage need: We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
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. New Hampshire soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
What Else to Consider for Pansy in New Hampshire
The zone range tells you where pansy is grown — but New Hampshire growers also need to think about:
Very short season in the White Mountains (80-100 frost-free days)
Rocky glacial soils throughout the state
Harsh winters with deep snow cover
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every New Hampshire grower, not just pansy — is covered on the New Hampshire growing guide.
Timing shifts within New Hampshire
Pansy needs about 70 days of frost-free season from planting to harvest. Even Coos County — New Hampshire’s shortest season at 145 frost-free days — clears that by 75 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in New Hampshire. What varies is your own parcel.
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"). Pansy's 70-day requirement: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database (days to maturity). A parcel report resolves your address's own frost dates.
Pollinator + Wildlife Value
Pansy draws honeybees and native bees (moderate value). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, pansy can only work that bloom inside New Hampshire's frost window — roughly 171 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Apr 22 - May 4) and closing at the first (Oct 10 - Oct 21), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020. Pollinator value: We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
New Hampshire Cooperative Extension
For New Hampshire-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for pansy, the canonical source is UNH Cooperative Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Pansy native to New Hampshire?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Pansy as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of New Hampshire's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few New Hampshire natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The New Hampshire growing guide lists plants that USDA PLANTS records growing in New Hampshire and that Kew and NatureServe Explorer both list in its native range, leaving out any that NatureServe flags as exotic there or that our audit holds.
State records: USDA PLANTS Database state-distribution data (presence, not state-level nativity), accessed 2026-10-19.
Common Questions About Growing Pansy in New Hampshire
When can I plant Pansy in New Hampshire?
New Hampshire's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 22 and May 4, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 10 and Oct 21 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Pansy, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in New Hampshire 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 Pansy grown in across New Hampshire?
New Hampshire spans USDA hardiness zones 3b-6b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Pansy carries a range of zones 6-10, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical New Hampshire site have?
A typical New Hampshire site sees ~171 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Pansy 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.
Is Pansy native to New Hampshire?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Pansy as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of New Hampshire's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few New Hampshire natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Pansy in New Hampshire?
Pansy prefers pH 5.4-6.5 and well (dry spells) drainage. We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet. That sits in the common-ground band across New Hampshire soils — a 30-minute soil test from a local Extension lab confirms it for your specific site.
Will Pansy actually grow on my specific land in New Hampshire?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores pansy against your address's mapped soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost-date data drawn from USDA SSURGO, NOAA, and PRISM — not state averages.
Check your specific parcel in New Hampshire
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores pansy against your land's mapped soil, modelled sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that New Hampshire pansy averages can't show:
We read public map data around New Hampshire — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the New Hampshire pansy average
Explore More
Growing guides for pansy
Explore New Hampshire county by county
New Hampshire carries 10 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for pansy there:
Where else pansy grows
Pansy's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire
New Hampshire has a growing page for 807 plants — a rotating sample of the rest of the shelf.
Last updated: