Conditional — Some Areas
prairie smoke (zones 3-7) reaches only part of Georgia (7a-9b): zone 7 are in range, so where you are in the state decides it.
Prairie Smoke in Georgia — the short answer
Prairie Smoke in Georgia: hardy in zones 3–7, full sun, against a state median of ~275 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 3-7
- 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
- Georgia zones
- 7a-9b
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Feb 17 - Mar 10 – Nov 24 - Dec 4
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 204 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.
Georgia spans zones 7a-9b, 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 prairie smoke 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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Georgia is not one climate
Georgia’s winter-low ladder runs across 159 counties, from zone 7.5 in Fannin County to zone 9 in Worth County. That is 15°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between prairie smoke overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.
The middle half of 159 counties runs 8–9 zones, with a median of 8.5 zones — a 1.5-zone span end to end.
Measured across 159 Georgia 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 Prairie Smoke Stands in Georgia
Prairie Smoke is rated for zones 3–7 — a cold floor USDA puts at -40 to -30°F. No Georgia 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 Georgia winters, not about prairie smoke.
Above the zone 7 ceiling
159 counties
- Fannin County · zone 7b
- Gilmer County · zone 7b
- Rabun County · zone 7b
3 of 159 shown
Too little winter chill rather than too much cold — a low-chill selection is what changes it.
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
Prairie Smoke Needs
- USDA Zones: 3-7
- Frost-Free Days: 365+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Picking window: ~21 days of harvest
- Drought tolerance: High
Georgia Has
- USDA Zones: 7a-9b
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Feb 17 - Mar 10
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Nov 24 - Dec 4
- Annual Rainfall: 45-55 inches
- Common Soils: Red clay (Piedmont), Sandy loam (Coastal Plain), Alluvial
Plant Zone Range (zones 3-7)
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 Prairie Smoke in Georgia
The frost window
Across Georgia, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 17 and Mar 10, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 24 and Dec 4 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 259-day window you can count on — up to 290 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
Georgia runs as cold as USDA zone 7, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for prairie smoke, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether prairie smoke is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within Georgia; 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
The zone check says prairie smoke survives winter in part of Georgia, not across all of it. Whether the season is long enough — and warm enough — is a different question.
Frost-free days
Prairie Smoke wants 365+ frost-free days; a typical Georgia site sees ~275 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020) — 90 days short of what it needs. A typical Georgia season does not carry this crop to harvest outdoors, and a gap that size is not one an earlier sowing date or a faster cultivar closes; growing it here means growing it under cover.
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
Prairie Smoke likes near-neutral soil (pH 5-7). That's the common-ground band across Georgia's red clay (piedmont) and sandy loam (coastal plain) — a soil test confirms it for your site. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 5.5 and 6.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Georgia soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Georgia 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. Georgia soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
What Else to Consider for Prairie Smoke in Georgia
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Georgia growers also need to think about:
Heavy red Piedmont clay is difficult to work and drains poorly
High humidity drives fungal diseases in summer
Fire ants are a persistent pest in gardens across the state
Summer heat (90-100F) can stress cool-season crops by May
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Georgia grower, not just prairie smoke — is covered on the Georgia growing guide.
Timing shifts within Georgia
Prairie Smoke needs about 365 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. No Georgia county gives it that outdoors: even Colquitt County, the state’s longest season at 305 frost-free days, falls 60 days short — so it needs transplants, a short-season variety, or covered growing.
Across Georgia’s 159 counties the frost-free season runs from 204 days in Towns County to 305 days in Colquitt County — a spread of 101 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Georgia county sees 275 frost-free days, which is 90 days short of what prairie smoke needs — so on a typical Georgia parcel this is a transplant-or-protect crop, not a direct-sow one.
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"). Prairie Smoke's 365-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
Prairie Smoke draws native bees and butterflies (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, prairie smoke can only work that bloom inside Georgia's frost window — roughly 275 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Feb 17 - Mar 10) and closing at the first (Nov 24 - Dec 4), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Georgia Cooperative Extension
For Georgia-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for prairie smoke, the canonical source is UGA Cooperative Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Prairie Smoke native to Georgia?
Prairie Smoke is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Georgia. It can still earn a place in a Georgia garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Georgia 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 Prairie Smoke in Georgia
When can I plant Prairie Smoke in Georgia?
Georgia's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Feb 17 and Mar 10, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Nov 24 and Dec 4 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Prairie Smoke, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in Georgia 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 Prairie Smoke grown in across Georgia?
Georgia spans USDA hardiness zones 7a-9b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Prairie Smoke carries a range of zones 3-7, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Georgia site have?
A typical Georgia site sees ~275 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Prairie Smoke needs 365+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.
Is Prairie Smoke native to Georgia?
Prairie Smoke is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Georgia. It can still earn a place in a Georgia garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
How should I amend the soil for Prairie Smoke in Georgia?
Prairie Smoke prefers pH 5-7 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That sits in the common-ground band across Georgia soils — a 30-minute soil test from a local Extension lab confirms it for your specific site.
Will Prairie Smoke actually grow on my specific land in Georgia?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores prairie smoke 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 Georgia
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores prairie smoke against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Georgia prairie smoke averages can't show:
We read public map data around Georgia — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Georgia prairie smoke average
Explore More
Growing guides for prairie smoke
Explore Georgia county by county
Georgia carries 159 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for prairie smoke there:
Where else prairie smoke grows
Prairie Smoke's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to Georgia 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 Georgia
Georgia has a growing page for 1,034 plants — a rotating sample of the rest of the shelf.
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