Alaska spans USDA hardiness zones 1a-7b, with a growing season of about 130 frost-free days — a compact season where quick-maturing crops, hardy perennials, and a well-timed fall planting do the heavy lifting.
Taken together, 10-160 inches of annual rainfall, a median of roughly 2,000 growing-degree days (base 50°F), and about 2,100 winter chill hours for tree fruit draw the line between what thrives here and what merely survives. The dominant soils run to permafrost, glacial silt, volcanic ash, and peat, and their drainage is one of the strongest predictors of which crops take hold and which falter. A short list that earns its place here — cabbage, potato, rhubarb, and sitka spruce — with any one site's soil, sun, and drainage making the final cut.
Grounded inUSDA PHZM 2023•NOAA Climate Normals•USDA NRCS SSURGO•GDD aggregate (Cornell CALS)•Chill-hour aggregate (MSU Extension)•EPA FRS•USDA PLANTS•Growable Ground suitability scoring
Alaska spans zones 1a-7b, but your yard sits in exactly one — and slope, tree cover, and low spots nudge it further. Enter your address and we'll score 1,112 plants against your land's actual soil, sun, and frost.
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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USDA Zones
1a-7b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last Frost
May 1 - Jun 15
NOAA 30-yr Normals
First Frost
Aug 15 - Oct 1
NOAA 30-yr Normals
Annual Rainfall
10-160 inches
NOAA Climate Normals
Zone maps are averages across Alaska. Your yard's slope, trees, and frost pockets shift what actually grows — see your land's exact reading.
The soil types that dominate Alaska — how each drains decides more about crop success than almost anything else. Tap any soil to learn what it is and how to work with it.
Drainage
Slow in summer, because meltwater cannot percolate through the frozen floor beneath — the active layer stays cool and often waterlogged.
What thrives
Cold-adapted, fast-maturing crops under the long subarctic daylight: potatoes, cabbage, kale, broccoli, and hardy greens famously reach remarkable size in the land of the midnight sun.
No verified open-license photo yet — it behaves like the silt-loam profile above.
Drainage
Moderate to slow. The fine particles hold water well but can compact and crust, and they erode easily when left bare.
What thrives
Vegetables and small fruits do well on its steady moisture; greens, brassicas, and root crops appreciate the fine, stone-free tilth.
Drainage
Excellent and unusual: ash soils drain freely yet hold remarkable amounts of plant-available water in their porous structure — the best of both habits.
What thrives
Volcanic regions grow celebrated crops the world over: orchards, berries, vegetables, coffee, and wine grapes all prosper on ash-derived soils.
Drainage
Saturated by default — peat forms precisely because water excludes the oxygen decomposition needs. Drained peat holds moisture beautifully but can stay cold late into spring.
What thrives
Acid-lovers are at home: blueberries and cranberries are the classic peatland crops, with rhododendrons, azaleas, and bog natives alongside.
Soil data: USDA NRCS SSURGO · Soil types explained
Plants well-suited to Alaska's climate, soils, and growing season — each links to its full growing profile.
The plants Alaska put its name on — cultural emblems, not growing recommendations.
Forget-me-not
Myosotis alpestris
Designated 1917.
Picea sitchensis
Designated 1962. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Plants the USDA PLANTS Database documents as native and present in Alaska — a real per-state range, not just a zone match. Presence is statewide, so a plant may still be uncommon in your specific county; your state’s Cooperative Extension or a native-plant society is the local authority.
US-native plants whose hardiness range overlaps Alaska’s USDA zones 1a-7b but which USDA PLANTS doesn’t map to a single state range here. Zone overlap is a starting filter, not a range map.
What an experienced grower plans around here — each one has a move.
Extremely short growing season (70-110 frost-free days)
A high tunnel or greenhouse is standard Alaska practice — it turns 90 outdoor days into a real growing season.
Permafrost prevents deep root growth in many areas
Raised beds lift roots above the cold and warm weeks earlier in spring — the proven northern workaround.
Limited soil development in glacial terrain
Start with a soil test to see what glacial ground actually has, then build up with imported topsoil and steady compost.
For cultivar selection, pest pressure, and planting-time guidance specific to Alaska, the UAF Cooperative Extension Service is the authoritative local source.
Safe to Grow Here?What the federal record shows across Alaska — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Alaska — 15,895 documented sites across 7 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 281 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
Alaska 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.
Severity Distribution
across Alaska
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around Alaska, two things run higher than the national average — Mining (5,812 sites) and Superfund (281 sites). It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.
Mining: Mining sites — both historic and active — can leach heavy metals (arsenic, lead, cadmium, mercury) into soil and water for centuries after operations cease.
Superfund: Superfund sites represent the most severe contamination in the federal system.
Test soil for heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury) — this is essential near any mining site.
Commission professional soil testing before any food production (test for heavy metals, VOCs, and SVOCs).
Sources: EPA, USGS — 1.8M documented sites tracked nationwide across 9 federal source types.
State averages sketch the shape. Your soil, sun exposure, drainage, and microclimate decide what actually takes. Pull a site-specific report for your exact parcel.
Enter your address. We read your soil, sun, drainage, and frost dates, then score 1,112 plants against the real conditions on your land.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources analyzed in seconds
Alaska spans USDA hardiness zones 1a-7b, per the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023. Zones reflect average annual extreme minimum temperatures from 1991–2020 weather data.
The last spring frost in Alaska is typically around May 1 - Jun 15, and the first fall frost around Aug 15 - Oct 1, per NOAA 30-year climate normals (1991–2020). Your specific site may differ — frost dates vary by elevation, proximity to water, and local microclimate.
Alaska's zones 1a-7b support a wide range — strong performers include Cabbage, Potato, Rhubarb, Sitka Spruce, and Kale. What actually takes on any one site comes down to its soil, sun, and drainage, and we score each plant against the real conditions at your address.
Officially, Alaska spans USDA zones 1a-7b (USDA PHZM 2023) — but a zone is a 30-year average of winter's coldest night across an area, and it can't see any one yard. A south-facing slope, a tree line, or a low frost pocket can shift a single site by half a zone either way, which is why neighboring gardeners often quote different numbers. We read the conditions at your exact address — soil, sun, slope, and frost — and score 1,112 plants against what's actually there.
The federal record across Alaska runs heavier than most — 15,895 documented sites — so test the soil before planting food in the ground, and raised beds with clean imported soil grow well in the meantime. Even here, proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis of any one yard; the contamination map shows exactly what's recorded and where.
Start with three facts. Alaska spans USDA zones 1a-7b, which sets what survives winter; the statewide frost window runs about May 1 - Jun 15 to Aug 15 - Oct 1 (NOAA 30-year climate normals); and 15,895 documented sites sit on the federal record here, so a soil test before food beds is the smart first step. From there, matching plants to your actual soil and sun is the fun part.
Everything on this page is a Alaska average. Your yard writes its own version — we read soil, sun, drainage, and frost at your exact address. Try it for 14 days — no card required.
Explore growing conditions by county — each has its own zone range and land area.
Explore growing conditions by city or town in Alaska.
