Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
phasey bean (zones 9-13) does not overlap with Massachusetts's zone range (5a-7b). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
2 zones short — what would close it
Phasey Bean is hardy to zone 9, and the warmest ground in Massachusetts is zone 7 — 2 zones short. Planted in open ground it will not survive a Massachusetts winter. To grow it here, grow phasey bean under glass — a greenhouse is the only lift this wide the engine models.
A greenhouse is the lift this needs. How a greenhouse changes what you can grow →
Zone math from 9-13 (plant) against 5-7 (Massachusetts). Lift modeled by crop_engine Sprint 20B effective_zone_modifier (+2 zones) via api/fast_sections.py Unlock Engine v2.
Your yard isn't the whole zone.
Phasey Bean is grown as an annual, so your winter zone isn't the deciding factor — your frost-free window is. A typical Massachusetts site runs ~206 frost-free days, but that is a state median, not your yard: slope, trees, and low spots move the last-frost date across a single parcel. Enter your address and we'll score phasey bean against your land's actual frost dates, sun, and soil.
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Zone Comparison
Phasey Bean Needs
- USDA Zones: 9-13
- Frost-Free Days: 90+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 3 ft tall
- Drought tolerance: Medium
Massachusetts Has
- USDA Zones: 5a-7b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 4 - Apr 14
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Oct 24 - Nov 14
- Annual Rainfall: 42-50 inches
- Common Soils: Glacial till, Sandy loam, Rocky loam
Plant Zone Range (zones 9-13)
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 Phasey Bean in Massachusetts
The frost window
Across Massachusetts, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 4 and Apr 14, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 24 and Nov 14 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 193-day window you can count on — up to 224 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.
Frost tenderness
Phasey Bean is frost-tender — its listed minimum temperature is 59°F (USDA PLANTS Database) — so set plants out two to three weeks PAST your local last hard freeze, not on it and not on the state's earliest date. The 28°F marker above is when killing freezes stop, not when light frost does.
When to start the seed
Phasey Bean is direct-sown where it grows rather than started under cover, so there is no seed-tray head start to bank — Massachusetts's dates above are the whole calendar for it. That makes the last-freeze date the binding constraint, and a warmer pocket of your own yard is worth more to this crop than it is to a transplanted one.
Timing tuned to sub-state frost dates — Berkshire County, not the statewide average.
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 phasey bean does not survive a Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts under protection.
Frost-free days
Phasey Bean wants 90+ frost-free days; a typical Massachusetts site sees ~206 (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
Phasey Bean 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 Massachusetts. 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 6 and 7 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Massachusetts soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants poorly (saturated >50% of year), well (dry spells). If your Massachusetts site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Your land, not the state average
Massachusetts's soils run mostly fine sandy loam, but SSURGO maps the series, texture, and drainage under your exact parcel. Phasey Bean needs about 7 inches of workable depth, so it is that horizon — not the surface — you are testing for. That map unit, not the state average, decides how phasey bean performs.
Check your parcel → Source: USDA NRCS SSURGO.
Plant pH and drainage requirements from USDA PLANTS Database. Massachusetts soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Phasey Bean in Massachusetts — Quick Answer
- Verdict: Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
- Plant Zones: 9-13 (USDA PLANTS Database)
- State Zones: 5a-7b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023)
- Growing Season: 28°F hard freezes about Apr 4 - Apr 14 to Oct 24 - Nov 14 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020)
What Else to Consider for Phasey Bean in Massachusetts
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Massachusetts growers also need to think about:
Short growing season (120-180 frost-free days) limits warm-season crops
Rocky glacial soils require amendment in many areas
Late spring frosts can damage early plantings through mid-May
Deer pressure is significant in suburban and rural areas
Growing phasey bean here specifically
Phasey Bean wants pH 4.5–8.0 and rates to USDA zones 9–13, but Massachusetts's soils are dominantly fine sandy loam — the fit is decided by your parcel's own map unit, not the state average.
Match phasey bean to your parcel's SSURGO map unit — test pH and texture, and amend toward its 4.5–8.0 range. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Massachusetts grower, not just phasey bean — is covered on the Massachusetts growing guide.
Timing shifts within Massachusetts
Massachusetts isn't one climate. In Berkshire County, the last hard freeze (28°F) holds until about Apr 29 — roughly 19 days later than the recorded state median — so plant phasey bean to your county's window, not the statewide date.
Phasey Bean needs about 90 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Berkshire County — Massachusetts’s shortest season at 171 frost-free days — clears that by 81 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in Massachusetts. What varies is your own parcel.
Across Massachusetts’s 14 counties the frost-free season runs from 171 days in Berkshire County to 246 days in Nantucket County — a spread of 75 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Massachusetts county sees 206 frost-free days, leaving phasey bean about 116 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"). Phasey Bean's 90-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
Phasey Bean draws honeybees and native bees (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, phasey bean can only work that bloom inside Massachusetts's frost window — roughly 206 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Apr 4 - Apr 14) and closing at the first (Oct 24 - Nov 14), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Massachusetts Cooperative Extension
For Massachusetts-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for phasey bean, the canonical source is UMass Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Phasey Bean native to Massachusetts?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Phasey Bean as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Massachusetts's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Massachusetts natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Massachusetts 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 Phasey Bean in Massachusetts
When can I plant Phasey Bean in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 4 and Apr 14, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 24 and Nov 14 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Phasey Bean is frost-tender — its listed minimum temperature is 59°F (USDA PLANTS Database) — so wait two to three weeks past your site's last hard freeze, when light frost has also stopped, before planting out.
What hardiness zone is Phasey Bean grown in across Massachusetts?
Massachusetts spans USDA hardiness zones 5a-7b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Phasey Bean carries a range of zones 9-13, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Massachusetts site have?
A typical Massachusetts site sees ~206 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Phasey Bean needs 90+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date. In cooler counties like Berkshire, the freeze-free season runs shorter than the state average, so verify your own county's window.
Is Phasey Bean native to Massachusetts?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Phasey Bean as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Massachusetts's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Massachusetts natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Phasey Bean in Massachusetts?
Phasey Bean tolerates pH 4.5-8 and poorly (saturated >50% of year), 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 Massachusetts site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Phasey Bean actually grow on my specific land in Massachusetts?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores phasey bean 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 Massachusetts
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores phasey bean against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Massachusetts phasey bean averages can't show:
We read public map data around Massachusetts — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Massachusetts phasey bean average
Explore More
Growing guides for phasey bean
Analysis by the Growable Ground research team, grounded in USDA PLANTS, USDA NRCS SSURGO, NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020), and named Cooperative Extension sources. How we know →
Cite this dataset
Kirchick, M. (2026). Growable Ground Plant Database [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21435643
Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0. DOI 10.5281/zenodo.21435643
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