Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
potato yam (zones 9-12) does not overlap with District of Columbia's zone range (7b-8a). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
One zone short — what would close it
Potato Yam is hardy to zone 9, and the warmest ground in District Of Columbia is zone 8 — 1 zone short. Planted in open ground it will not survive a District Of Columbia winter. To grow it here, grow potato yam in a hoop house or unheated greenhouse — its modeled 1.5-zone lift covers this gap.
A hoop house or unheated greenhouse is the lift this needs. How a greenhouse changes what you can grow →
Zone math from 9-12 (plant) against 7-8 (District of Columbia). Lift modeled by crop_engine.GREENHOUSE_ZONE_MODIFIER_BY_SUBTYPE['hoop_house'] (+1.5 zones) via api/fast_sections.py Unlock Engine v2.
Potato Yam in District of Columbia — the short answer
Potato Yam in District of Columbia: hardy in zones 9–12, full sun.
- Plant zones
- 9-12
- Not verified
- District of Columbia zones
- 7b-8a
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Mar 15 – Nov 24
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Typical season
- ~254 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020
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.
District of Columbia spans zones 7b-8a, 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 potato yam 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
Where Potato Yam Stands in District of Columbia
Potato Yam is rated for zones 9–12 — a cold floor USDA puts at 20 to 30°F. No District of Columbia 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 District of Columbia winters, not about potato yam.
Below the zone 9 floor
1 county
- District of Columbia County · zone 8a
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.
Zone Comparison
Potato Yam Needs
- USDA Zones: 9-12
- Sun: Full Sun
- Picking window: ~30 days of harvestWe haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
District of Columbia Has
- USDA Zones: 7b-8a
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Mar 15
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Nov 24
- Annual Rainfall: 39-43 inches
- Common Soils: Urban fill, Silt loam, Clay loam
Plant Zone Range (zones 9-12)
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 Potato Yam in District of Columbia
The frost window
Across District of Columbia, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Mar 15 and Mar 15, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 24 and Nov 24 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 254-day window you can count on — up to 254 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
District of Columbia runs as cold as USDA zone 7, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for potato yam, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether potato yam is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within District of Columbia; 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
Potato Yam likes near-neutral soil (pH 5.3-8). That's the common-ground band across District of Columbia's urban fill and silt loam — a soil test confirms it for your site. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 6 and 6.7 — worth knowing before you decide whether a District of Columbia soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your District of Columbia site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, a raised bed lifts the roots above wet ground, or work in compost.
Your land, not the state average
District Of Columbia's soils run mostly silt loam, but SSURGO maps the series, texture, and drainage under your exact parcel. Potato Yam needs about 59 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 potato yam performs.
Check your parcel → Source: USDA NRCS SSURGO.
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. District of Columbia soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Before you plant potato yam 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 potato yam goes in. What follows is District of Columbia’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 District of Columbia — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across District of Columbia — 1,459 documented sites across 5 of the 8 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 50 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
There's a meaningful federal record across District of Columbia — worth a look before you plant food, not a reason to hold back from growing. Proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis of any one yard. A soil test before new food beds is the sensible precaution here, and the map shows exactly which sites sit where, so you can see what's actually near you.
Sources Checked
across District of Columbia
Severity Distribution
across District of Columbia
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around District of Columbia, Superfund runs higher than the national average — 50 sites across District of Columbia. It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.
Superfund: Superfund sites represent the most severe contamination in the federal system.
Commission professional soil testing before any food production (test for heavy metals, VOCs, and SVOCs).
Sources: EPA, USGS — 950K documented sites tracked nationwide across 8 federal source types.
What Else to Consider for Potato Yam in District of Columbia
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but District of Columbia growers also need to think about:
Dense urban siting means small lots, compacted fill soils, and limited sun
Summer heat and humidity promote fungal diseases
The urban heat-island effect pushes summer temperatures above surrounding suburbs
Growing potato yam here specifically
District Of Columbia's soils run mostly silt loam (Ultisols), and whether that suits potato yam's pH 5.3–8.0 preference comes down to your exact parcel, not the statewide picture.
Pull your parcel's SSURGO map unit, test pH, and amend toward potato yam's 5.3–8.0 target before planting. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every District of Columbia grower, not just potato yam — is covered on the District of Columbia growing guide.
Pollinator + Wildlife Value
Potato Yam draws native bees (low value). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, potato yam can only work that bloom inside District of Columbia's frost window — roughly 254 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Mar 15) and closing at the first (Nov 24), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020. Pollinator value: We haven't confirmed this against a published source yet.
Good to Know Before You Plant Potato Yam
Potato Yam is listed as toxic to dogs, cats (all) at a moderate level. (Source: Cornell Poisonous Plants Database.) Most listed plants only cause brief upset — a raised bed or a fenced corner usually keeps curious pets clear.
District of Columbia Cooperative Extension
For District of Columbia-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for potato yam, the canonical source is UDC Center for Urban Agriculture. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Potato Yam native to District of Columbia?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Potato Yam as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of District of Columbia's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few District of Columbia natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The District of Columbia growing guide lists plants that USDA PLANTS records growing in District of Columbia 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 Potato Yam in District of Columbia
When can I plant Potato Yam in District of Columbia?
District of Columbia's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Mar 15 and Mar 15, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 24 and Nov 24 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Potato Yam, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in District of Columbia 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 Potato Yam grown in across District of Columbia?
District of Columbia spans USDA hardiness zones 7b-8a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Potato Yam is listed for zones 9-12, which do not overlap them, so there is no zone in District of Columbia where this page can call outdoor growing reliable. A parcel report resolves your own address's zone.
How many frost-free days does a typical District of Columbia site have?
A typical District of Columbia site sees ~254 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Potato Yam needs 90+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.
Is Potato Yam native to District of Columbia?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Potato Yam as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of District of Columbia's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few District of Columbia natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Potato Yam in District of Columbia?
Potato Yam prefers pH 5.3-8 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That sits in the common-ground band across District of Columbia soils — a 30-minute soil test from a local Extension lab confirms it for your specific site.
Will Potato Yam actually grow on my specific land in District of Columbia?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores potato yam 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 District of Columbia
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores potato yam against your land's mapped soil, modelled sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that District of Columbia potato yam averages can't show:
We read public map data around District of Columbia — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the District of Columbia potato yam average
Explore More
Growing guides for potato yam
Explore District of Columbia county by county
District of Columbia carries 1 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for potato yam there:
Where else potato yam grows
Potato Yam's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to District of Columbia 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 District of Columbia
District of Columbia has a growing page for 1,010 plants — a rotating sample of the rest of the shelf.
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
Last updated: