Unlikely — Zone Mismatch
rosemary (zones 8-10) does not overlap with West Virginia's zone range (5b-7a). Growing outdoors is unlikely without significant protection.
One zone short — what would close it
Rosemary is hardy to zone 8, and the warmest ground in West Virginia is zone 7 — 1 zone short. Planted in open ground it will not survive a West Virginia winter. To grow it here, grow rosemary 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 8-10 (plant) against 5-7 (West Virginia). Lift modeled by crop_engine.GREENHOUSE_ZONE_MODIFIER_BY_SUBTYPE['hoop_house'] (+1.5 zones) via api/fast_sections.py Unlock Engine v2.
Rosemary in West Virginia — the short answer
Rosemary in West Virginia: hardy in zones 8–10, full sun, against a state median of ~204 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 8-10
- 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
- West Virginia zones
- 5b-7a
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Apr 4 - Apr 15 – Oct 26 - Nov 5
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 170 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze
- Days to maturity
- 90 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.
West Virginia spans zones 5b-7a, 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 rosemary 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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West Virginia is not one climate
West Virginia’s winter-low ladder runs across 55 counties, from zone 6 in Hardy County to zone 7 in Wyoming County. That is 10°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between rosemary overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.
The middle half of 55 counties runs 6.5–7 zones, with a median of 6.5 zones — a 1-zone span end to end.
Measured across 55 West Virginia 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 Rosemary Stands in West Virginia
Rosemary is rated for zones 8–10 — a cold floor USDA puts at 10 to 20°F. No West Virginia 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 West Virginia winters, not about rosemary.
Below the zone 8 floor
55 counties
- Hardy County · zone 6a
- Pocahontas County · zone 6a
- Randolph County · zone 6a
3 of 55 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.
Zone Comparison
Rosemary Needs
- USDA Zones: 8-10
- Frost-Free Days: 120+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 4 ft tall
- Picking window: ~120 days of harvest
- Drought tolerance: High
West Virginia Has
- USDA Zones: 5b-7a
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 4 - Apr 15
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Oct 26 - Nov 5
- Annual Rainfall: 38-56 inches
- Common Soils: Shale-derived, Sandy loam, Clay loam
Plant Zone Range (zones 8-10)
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 Rosemary in West Virginia
The frost window
Across West Virginia, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 4 and Apr 15, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 26 and Nov 5 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 194-day window you can count on — up to 215 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 rosemary goes out, not when it starts. It is sown under cover about 10 weeks ahead, so counting back from West Virginia's late-side last freeze of Apr 15 is what fixes your sowing date — and a yard that clears frost earlier than the state's late date starts earlier still.
Winter standing
Rosemary overwinters from USDA zone 8 and warmer (NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder), and West Virginia runs as cold as zone 5, so it does not survive winter in the ground here. It is a woody plant rather than a crop you resow each spring, so neither a fall establishment date nor a harvest countdown describes it in West Virginia — which is why this page gives neither. What it needs here is a way through winter, not a planting date.
Timing tuned to sub-state frost dates — Pocahontas County, not the statewide average.
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 rosemary does not survive a West Virginia 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 West Virginia under protection.
Frost-free days
Rosemary wants 120+ frost-free days; a typical West Virginia site sees ~204 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). That leaves comfortable headroom for succession planting.
Growing degree days
Rosemary needs ~2500 GDD (base 50°F) to ripen. The state median runs ~2941 GDD (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), so West Virginia sits right at the threshold — pay attention to siting and microclimate.
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
Rosemary tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4.2-8.3) — 4.1 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in West Virginia. 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 6.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a West Virginia soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your West Virginia site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Your land, not the state average
West Virginia's soils run mostly silt loam, but SSURGO maps the series, texture, and drainage under your exact parcel. Rosemary needs about 19 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 rosemary 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. West Virginia soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Before you plant rosemary 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 rosemary goes in. What follows is West Virginia’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 West Virginia — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across West Virginia — 17,312 documented sites across 7 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 112 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
West Virginia 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 West Virginia
Severity Distribution
across West Virginia
Highest-Severity Sites
Know Before You Grow
- •Underground tanks leak petroleum as they age — near a former filling station, test the soil.
- •Near a brownfield, raised beds of imported soil give your food clean ground.
- •On a private well, test for nitrates: above 10 mg/L the water needs treatment before irrigating.
Sources: EPA, USGS — 1.8M documented sites tracked nationwide across 9 federal source types.
What Else to Consider for Rosemary in West Virginia
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but West Virginia growers also need to think about:
Steep terrain limits usable growing area
Thin acidic soils over shale bedrock
Short mountain valley growing seasons
Growing rosemary here specifically
Rosemary wants pH 4.2–8.3 and rates to USDA zones 8–10, but West Virginia's soils are dominantly silt loam — the fit is decided by your parcel's own map unit, not the state average.
Match rosemary to your parcel's SSURGO map unit — test pH and texture, and amend toward its 4.2–8.3 range. How to handle it →
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every West Virginia grower, not just rosemary — is covered on the West Virginia growing guide.
Timing shifts within West Virginia
West Virginia isn't one climate. In Pocahontas County, the last hard freeze (28°F) holds until about Apr 30 — roughly 20 days later than the recorded state median — so plant rosemary to your county's window, not the statewide date.
Rosemary needs about 120 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Pocahontas County — West Virginia’s shortest season at 170 frost-free days — clears that by 50 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in West Virginia. What varies is your own parcel.
Across West Virginia’s 55 counties the frost-free season runs from 170 days in Pocahontas County to 232 days in Logan County — a spread of 62 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median West Virginia county sees 204 frost-free days, leaving rosemary about 84 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"). Rosemary's 120-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
Rosemary draws honeybees and native bees (high value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, rosemary can only work that bloom inside West Virginia's frost window — roughly 204 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Apr 4 - Apr 15) and closing at the first (Oct 26 - Nov 5), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020. Deer pressure is meaningful across much of West Virginia; rosemary is listed as deer-resistant (USDA PLANTS Database), which makes it a safer pick for unfenced sites. Our deer & wildlife guide carries the full deer-resistant list and how to protect the rest.
Recommended Rosemary Varieties for West Virginia
West Virginia publishes no state variety trial for rosemary, so we won't invent a "best for West Virginia" list. Choose types rated to your USDA hardiness zone (5b-7a), and confirm winter survival and drainage against your own parcel.
West Virginia Cooperative Extension
For West Virginia-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for rosemary, the canonical source is WVU Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Common Questions About Growing Rosemary in West Virginia
When can I plant Rosemary in West Virginia?
West Virginia's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 4 and Apr 15, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 26 and Nov 5 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Rosemary overwinters only from USDA zone 8 and warmer, and West Virginia runs as cold as zone 5, so it does not survive winter in the ground here — the question for West Virginia growers is how to carry it through winter under cover, not which week to plant it.
What hardiness zone is Rosemary grown in across West Virginia?
West Virginia spans USDA hardiness zones 5b-7a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Rosemary carries a range of zones 8-10, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical West Virginia site have?
A typical West Virginia site sees ~204 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Rosemary needs 120+ 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 Pocahontas, the freeze-free season runs shorter than the state average, so verify your own county's window.
How should I amend the soil for Rosemary in West Virginia?
Rosemary tolerates pH 4.2-8.3 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 4.1-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a West Virginia site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Rosemary actually grow on my specific land in West Virginia?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores rosemary 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 West Virginia
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores rosemary against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that West Virginia rosemary averages can't show:
We read public map data around West Virginia — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the West Virginia rosemary average
Explore More
Growing guides for rosemary
Explore West Virginia county by county
West Virginia carries 55 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for rosemary there:
Where else rosemary grows
Rosemary's zone band crosses state lines — these are the states closest to West Virginia 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 West Virginia
West Virginia has a growing page for 893 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
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