Generally — Most Areas
salal (zones 8-13) suits most of Arizona (5b-10b) — zones 8-10 are in range, and the rest of the state is the exception.
Salal in Arizona — the short answer
Salal in Arizona: hardy in zones 8–13, shade, against a state median of ~266 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 8-13
- 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 salal 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 full report in seconds
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 salal 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
Salal is rated for zones 8–13 — a cold floor USDA puts at 10 to 20°F. Against Arizona’s 15 counties that band holds in 11 of them, and the line runs at Cochise County (zone 8a), the coldest county still inside it.
Inside zones 8–13
11 counties
- Greenlee County · zone 8a
- Mohave County · zone 8a
- Graham County · zone 8b
3 of 11 shown
Below the zone 8 floor
4 counties
- Coconino County · zone 6a
- Apache County · zone 6b
- Navajo County · zone 7a
3 of 4 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.
Even within Arizona's zones 5b-10b, county microclimates differ enough to change what thrives. These counties carry the closest zone match for salal (USDA PHZM 2023):
Zone Comparison
Salal Needs
- USDA Zones: 8-13
- Frost-Free Days: 200+
- Sun: Shade
- Mature size: 5 ft tall
- Drought tolerance: Low
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 8-13)
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 Salal 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 salal, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether salal 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.
Growing Season Fit
The zone check says salal survives winter in part of Arizona, not across all of it. Whether the season is long enough — and warm enough — is a different question.
Frost-free days
Salal wants 200+ frost-free days; a typical Arizona site sees ~266 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). That leaves comfortable headroom for succession planting.
Chill hours
Salal requires ~400 chill hours (32-45°F dormancy window). Arizona typically banks ~2087 chill hours per winter (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), which keeps this plant on track.
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
Salal likes near-neutral soil (pH 5.5-7). That's the common-ground band across Arizona's caliche and sandy loam — a soil test confirms it for your site.
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.
What Else to Consider for Salal 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 salal — is covered on the Arizona growing guide.
Timing shifts within Arizona
Salal needs about 200 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. 12 of Arizona’s 15 counties give it that outright. The tightest that does is Yavapai County at 207 frost-free days — 7 to spare. Below that line you are transplanting or extending the season, not direct-sowing.
Across Arizona’s 15 counties the frost-free season runs from 150 days in Coconino County to 345 days in Maricopa County — a spread of 195 days, which is why a single statewide planting date misleads. The median Arizona county sees 266 frost-free days, leaving salal about 66 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"). Salal's 200-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
Salal draws native bees (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Outdoors, salal can only work that bloom inside Arizona's frost window — roughly 266 days, opening after the last 28°F freeze (Feb 1 - Apr 2) and closing at the first (Nov 13 - Dec 12), per NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020.
Arizona Cooperative Extension
For Arizona-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for salal, 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 Salal native to Arizona?
Salal is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Arizona. It can still earn a place in a Arizona garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
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 Salal in Arizona
When can I plant Salal 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 Salal, 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 Salal grown in across Arizona?
Arizona spans USDA hardiness zones 5b-10b (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Salal carries a range of zones 8-13, 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). Salal needs 200+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.
Is Salal native to Arizona?
Salal is native to parts of the Lower 48, but the USDA PLANTS Database (accessed 2026-07-01) does not document a native range in Arizona. It can still earn a place in a Arizona garden — the zone comparison above tells you whether it will thrive.
How should I amend the soil for Salal in Arizona?
Salal prefers pH 5.5-7 (USDA PLANTS). That sits in the common-ground band across Arizona soils — a 30-minute soil test from a local Extension lab confirms it for your specific site.
Will Salal actually grow on my specific land in Arizona?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores salal 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 salal against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Arizona salal 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 salal average
Explore More
Growing guides for salal
Explore Arizona county by county
Arizona carries 15 counties with their own USDA zone — a sample of the growing pages for salal there:
Where else salal grows
Salal'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.
Last updated: