Generally — Most Areas
paper mulberry (zones 6-10) suits most of Arizona (5b-10b) — zones 6-10 are in range, and the rest of the state is the exception.
Paper Mulberry in Arizona — the short answer
Paper Mulberry in Arizona: hardy in zones 6–10, full sun, against a state median of ~266 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 6-10
- Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation
- Arizona zones
- 5b-10b
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Feb 1 - Apr 2 – Nov 13 - Dec 12
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 150 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 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.
Arizona spans zones 5b-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 paper mulberry 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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Arizona is not one climate
Arizona’s winter-low ladder runs across 15 counties, from zone 6 in Coconino County to zone 9.5 in Yuma County. That is 35°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between paper mulberry overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.
The middle half of 15 counties runs 7.5–9.5 zones, with a median of 8.5 zones — a 3.5-zone span end to end.
Measured across 15 Arizona 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 in Arizona Fits Best
Even within Arizona's zones 5b-10b, county microclimates differ enough to change what thrives. These counties carry the closest zone match for paper mulberry (USDA PHZM 2023):
Zone Comparison
Paper Mulberry Needs
- USDA Zones: 6-10
- Sun: Full Sun
Arizona Has
- USDA Zones: 5b-10b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Feb 1 - Apr 2
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Nov 13 - Dec 12
- Annual Rainfall: 3-25 inches
- Common Soils: Caliche, Sandy loam, Desert pavement
Plant Zone Range (zones 6-10)
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 Paper Mulberry in Arizona
The frost window
Across Arizona, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 1 and Apr 2, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 13 and Dec 12 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 225-day window you can count on — up to 314 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
Arizona runs as cold as USDA zone 5, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for paper mulberry, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether paper mulberry is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within Arizona; 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.
Soil + Drainage Fit
Paper Mulberry tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4.5-8) — 3.5 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Arizona. 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 7.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Arizona soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Arizona 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. Arizona soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Before you plant paper mulberry for food
Anything you grow to eat takes up what is in the ground it grows in, so what is on record near you is worth knowing before paper mulberry goes in. What follows is Arizona’s documented federal record at state scale — a screening signal, not a soil test, and not a statement about any one lot.
Safe to Grow Here?
What the federal record shows across Arizona — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Arizona — 32,297 documented sites across 7 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 184 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
Arizona carries one of the heavier federal records we track — and that's not a verdict on your yard. Proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis: nothing here says any particular parcel is affected. It does earn one concrete step — before food beds go in the ground, a professional soil test tells you exactly what you're working with, and raised beds with clean imported soil grow well almost anywhere in the meantime.
Sources Checked
across Arizona
Severity Distribution
across Arizona
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around Arizona, two things run higher than the national average across Arizona — Mining (6,160 sites) and Nitrate (11,388 sites). Knowing it is half the work — and it's nothing a thoughtful grower can't plan for.
Mining: Mining sites — both historic and active — can leach heavy metals (arsenic, lead, cadmium, mercury) into soil and water for centuries after operations cease.
Nitrate: Nitrate contamination primarily comes from agricultural fertilizer runoff and failing septic systems.
Test soil for heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury) — this is essential near any mining site.
Test well water for nitrate if you rely on a private well for irrigation (EPA standard: 10 mg/L).
Sources: EPA, USGS — 1.8M documented sites tracked nationwide across 9 federal source types.
What Else to Consider for Paper Mulberry in Arizona
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Arizona growers also need to think about:
Extreme heat exceeding 110F stresses most plants
Minimal rainfall requires drip irrigation
Caliche hardpan prevents root penetration without breaking through
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Arizona grower, not just paper mulberry — is covered on the Arizona growing guide.
Where in Arizona Paper Mulberry Is Zone-Hardy
Paper Mulberry is rated for USDA zones 6–10. Every one of Arizona’s 15 counties sits inside that band — from Coconino County at zone 6a to Yuma County at zone 9b — so winter cold is not what decides this plant anywhere in the state. What is left to vary is your own parcel: slope, shelter and cold-air drainage routinely move a site half a zone either way from the county figure.
Across those 15 counties Arizona’s winter-low ladder runs from zone 6a in Coconino County to zone 9b in Yuma County — 3.5 USDA zones of spread, which is 35°F between the two counties’ average coldest night of the year. That is why a statewide hardiness answer is where you start and not where you finish.
The planting window moves with it. Coconino County holds its last hard freeze (28°F) until about May 15, while Maricopa County is clear by Jan 15 — 120 days apart. Set paper mulberry out on your county’s date, not the state’s.
County hardiness zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023, per county. County last-freeze dates: NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS (1991-2020), county 28°F killing freeze — earlier than the folk 32°F "last frost". Paper Mulberry’s zone 6–10 band: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database. A parcel report resolves your address’s own zone and frost dates rather than its county’s.
Arizona Cooperative Extension
For Arizona-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for paper mulberry, the canonical source is University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Paper Mulberry native to Arizona?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Paper Mulberry as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Arizona's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Arizona natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Arizona 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 Paper Mulberry in Arizona
When can I plant Paper Mulberry in Arizona?
Arizona's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 1 and Apr 2, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 13 and Dec 12 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Paper Mulberry, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in Arizona 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 Paper Mulberry grown in across Arizona?
Arizona spans USDA hardiness zones 5b-10b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Paper Mulberry 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 Arizona site have?
A typical Arizona site sees ~266 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Paper Mulberry 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 Paper Mulberry native to Arizona?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Paper Mulberry as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Arizona's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Arizona natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Paper Mulberry in Arizona?
Paper Mulberry tolerates pH 4.5-8 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 3.5-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Arizona site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Paper Mulberry actually grow on my specific land in Arizona?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores paper mulberry 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 Arizona
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores paper mulberry against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Arizona paper mulberry averages can't show:
We read public map data around Arizona — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Arizona paper mulberry average
Explore More
Growing guides for paper mulberry
Explore Arizona county by county
Arizona carries 15 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for paper mulberry there:
Where else paper mulberry grows
Paper Mulberry's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to Arizona 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 Arizona
Arizona has a growing page for 1,041 plants — a rotating sample of the rest of the shelf.
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