What Grows in Westville, Florida

USDA Zones 8b · 5K acres

Westville, Florida, sits in USDA hardiness zone 8b — enough range to grow cool-season vegetables, hardy fruit, and warm-season crops that mature before the first hard frost.

These conditions suit cabbage, fig, california poppy, and collard greens — a starting list any specific site will trim or extend with its own soil, sun, and drainage.

Score your parcel · free

Even in Westville, no two yards are alike.

A low spot, a south-facing slope, or a stand of trees moves the frost date and sun across a single Westville lot. Enter your address and we'll score 1,086 plants against your land's actual soil, sun, and frost.

We read public map data around Westville — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

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Westville — the short answer

Westville, Florida: USDA zone 8b, about 281 days between hard freezes, across 5K acres of town.

USDA zone
8b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Feb 20
Holmes County normal — NOAA 1991–2020, nearest to this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Nov 28
Holmes County normal — NOAA 1991–2020, nearest to this town
Days between freezes
~281
Holmes County normal — NOAA 1991–2020, nearest to this town
Town area
5K acres
US Census TIGER/Line 2025

Every figure names the dataset it came from. No 30-year normal resolves at this town’s own centroid, so the hard-freeze dates are Holmes County’s — the closest measured record, labelled as such rather than passed off as local.

Hardiness Zone Range

8b8b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 8b is Westville's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Westville's 281-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Westville

Each reading below is measured for Westville itself — here is what it means for a garden here, and the move an experienced grower makes about it.

Season length

From county records

Westville runs about 281 days between hard freezes (read from Holmes County, the closest normal to Westville) — close to year-round growing.

Frost is rarely the limit here; winter plantings are as real as summer ones, and the harder question is which crops shrug off the summer heat.

Grow cool-season crops through the mild winter, and choose heat-tolerant varieties for the summer beds.

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Westville sits in USDA hardiness zone 8b.

The zone sets which perennials, shrubs, and fruit trees live through an average winter here — a plant rated for a colder zone is a safe bet, one rated warmer needs winter protection or gets treated as an annual.

Match perennials and fruit to the zone before you buy, so nothing you plant is a gamble against the cold.

USDA PHZM 2023

The kind of country Westville is in

Westville sits in the Southeastern Plains — EPA Level III, inside the wider Eastern Temperate Forests. That is read at Westville's own centroid rather than borrowed from Holmes County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Westville

Every plant below cleared Westville's own zone 8b and its 281-day season. Each card opens that plant's Florida profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in FloridaZones 2–11Westville's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
fig, photograph
Florida fig guideZones 6–10Westville's 8b — 2 zones of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
California poppy in FloridaZones 6–10Westville's 8b — 2 zones of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Florida growing notesZones 2–11Westville's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
loquat, photograph
Growing loquat in FloridaZones 7–10Westville's 8b — 1 zone of cold margin.
rosemary, photograph
Florida rosemary guideZones 8–10Westville's 8b is its exact cold limit.
kale, photograph
Kale in FloridaZones 2–11Westville's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
pomegranate, photograph
Pomegranate: Florida growing notesZones 7–10Westville's 8b — 1 zone of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Growing lavender in FloridaZones 5–8Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
lentil, photograph
Florida lentil guideZones 2–11Westville's 281 days clear the ~70 it needs.
prickly pear, photograph
Prickly pear in FloridaZones 5–10Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
okra, photograph
Okra: Florida growing notesZones 2–12Westville's 281 days clear the ~50 it needs.
almond, photograph
Growing almond in FloridaZones 5–9Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
potato, photograph
Florida potato guideZones 2–11Westville's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
pumpkin, photograph
Pumpkin in FloridaZones 3–11Westville's 281 days clear the ~40 it needs.
iris, photograph
Iris: Florida growing notesZones 3–10Westville's 8b — 5 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in FloridaZones 2–11Westville's 281 days clear the ~70 it needs.
Apache plume, photograph
Florida apache plume guideZones 5–11Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in FloridaZones 3–8Westville's 8b — 5 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Florida growing notesZones 3–8Westville's 8b — 5 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in FloridaWestville's 281 days clear the ~50 it needs.
holly, photograph
Florida holly guideZones 5–11Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Carolina jessamine, photograph
Carolina jessamine in FloridaZones 7–10Westville's 8b — 1 zone of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: Florida growing notesZones 6–8Westville's 8b — 2 zones of cold margin.
redbud, photograph
Growing redbud in FloridaZones 5–11Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
pearl millet, photograph
Florida pearl millet guideZones 5–11Westville's 281 days clear the ~60 it needs.
ajuga, photograph
Ajuga in FloridaZones 5–11Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Douglas fir, photograph
Douglas fir: Florida growing notesZones 4–10Westville's 8b — 4 zones of cold margin.
phacelia, photograph
Growing phacelia in FloridaZones 2–11Westville's 281 days clear the ~100 it needs.
liriope, photograph
Florida liriope guideZones 5–11Westville's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Westville?

Usually not — gardeners here simply switch what goes in the ground as the season moves. Cool-season crops can go in from around Jan 23; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Feb 20 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Nov 28 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. Here the calendar nearly circles: cool-season crops take the winter shift, and the next window is always close.

What's on the federal record near Westville

Closest first, within ~10 miles of Westville. Listing isn't leaking, and distance isn't exposure.

  1. WESTVILLE MINI MARTUnderground Storage Tanks · 0.8 mi
  2. SPRINT FLORIDA #548Underground Storage Tanks · 0.8 mi
  3. CHOCTAHATCHEE QUICK STOP #190Underground Storage Tanks · 1.0 mi
  4. NEW SOUTH EMPORIUMUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.0 mi
  5. FL DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION-MARIANNAUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.5 mi
  6. HATCHER'S DIXIE DANDY FORMERUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.6 mi
  7. WILLIAM W BRYANUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.6 mi
  8. ERNEST PETERSUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.7 mi
  9. BOWERS BARBER SHOPUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.8 mi
  10. FERGUSON PROPERTYUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.9 mi
  11. SHANNON STATIONUnderground Storage Tanks · 2.0 mi
  12. SHANNON STATION (FORMER)Underground Storage Tanks · 2.0 mi

6 more sites are on the record inside the same radius. See them on the map

Measured from Westville's center, not your beds. Run your own address for what's upwind of you specifically.

Environmental Intelligence

The counts behind that headline — every source type on the record near Westville.

Total Sites

105

within ~10 miles of Westville

Risk Level

Moderate

Highest-severity

17 brownfield sites

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Westville

High0Moderate17Low88

Highest-Severity Sites

Big Boss Ix LLC
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Big Boss Viii LLC
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Bonifay Well No. 3 Aaa0433
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
Bonifay Well No. 3 Aaa0433
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
Express Lane #769 - Fl0024
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Westville, Underground Storage Tanks runs higher than the national average — 86 sites within ~10 miles of Westville. It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.

Underground Storage Tanks: Underground storage tanks are the single most common source of soil contamination near homes and gardens.

Use raised beds with imported soil — this eliminates the primary soil-contact pathway.

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Westville

Get exact proximity distances to contamination sources for your specific parcel — plus soil, sun, drainage, and 1,086 plant recommendations.

25+ data sources read at your address, not the Westville average

Your land is one point inside Westville

Everything above resolves to Westville as a whole — one PHZM band, read across 5K acres, with hard-freeze dates borrowed from Holmes County’s record because no 30-year normal resolves at this town’s own centroid. Your parcel is one point inside that footprint. Slope, tree cover, a low spot that pools cold air, and what is in the soil are all resolved at the address, and none of them are visible at town scale. That is the honest boundary of this page, and the reason the next step is a reading of your own ground rather than a better local average.

Your Lot vs the Westville Average

Westville Average

  • USDA Zones 8b, averaged across Westville
  • One soil character for all of Westville
  • Frost dates read at Westville's scale: Feb 20 to Nov 28

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Westville's 8b
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Westville

Pull a site-specific report for your exact address in Westville, Florida — soil, sun, drainage, frost risk, and scored plant recommendations.

Three things about your lot that Westville averages can't show:

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Westville averages 281Your sun & shade

We read public map data around Westville — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

25+ data sources read at your address, not the Westville average

How we know this about Westville

The datasets: hardiness from the USDA ARS Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023, read at this town’s own centroid; hard-freeze dates from NOAA 1991–2020 28°F normals at Holmes County’s record, because none resolves here; boundaries and acreage from US Census TIGER/Line 2025; the contamination records from the federal sources named in their beats above. Soil is not read at town grain anywhere on this page — there is no town-resolution survey in our data, which is why you will find no soil grid here rather than a statewide one wearing a local label. The resolution ledger below names every figure this page inherited.

Common questions about Westville

When does frost risk typically end in Westville?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Westville typically lands around Feb 20, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — earlier than the light-frost dates most charts quote. That marks the hard freeze, not the last light frost — lighter frosts keep biting past it, which is why tender transplants here wait until about Mar 13.

When is the first frost in Westville?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Westville typically arrives around Nov 28, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Nov 14, so the watching starts about Oct 29 — about 281 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Westville?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Westville sees about 281 frost-free days — roughly Feb 20 through Nov 28, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Mar 13 to Nov 14, about 246 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Westville?

The federal record around Westville shows 105 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (86), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.8 miles out — a typical footprint for a growing area, and proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis of any one yard. It's worth seeing which recorded sites sit closest to where you grow, and testing the soil before new food beds near any of them.

How do I protect my plants from frost in Westville?

From about Oct 29 the job here turns from planting to protecting — the last start even a 30-day crop can finish. As the season closes around the first 28°F hard freeze near Nov 28 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals), three moves buy time: row cover or an old sheet over tender plants on still, clear nights; water the soil the afternoon before a freeze, so it holds warmth overnight; and harvest tomatoes, peppers and basil before Nov 28. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Westville's scale — its 8b band and its 281-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Westville's numbers: we read soil, sun, drainage and frost at your exact address. Try it for 14 days — no card required.

What this page reads at Westville’s own scale

5 of the readings below were taken at Westville's own scale — the 4,618 acres it covers and 105 documented sites around it; 5 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Westville's own USDA hardiness band, zones 8bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • 105 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Westville, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.8 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Westville's boundary and the 4,618 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 8b and a ~281-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Westville's own centroid, the Southeastern PlainsUS EPA Level III Ecoregions

Inherited from a wider read

  • The 28°F hard-freeze dates — Westville has no normal of its own, so its county's is the closest measured readfrom Holmes County
  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Westville's 4,618 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Holmes County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Holmes County
  • The growing challenges every Florida grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Florida
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Holmes County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Westville's 4,618 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Westville you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 4,618 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.8 miles out, measured from the town centrehow we read the record
  • Where cold air settles, which slopes face the sun, and which way the wind runs on your own ground — measured at your address, and averaged away by any Westville-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address