What Grows in Hanalei, Hawaii

USDA Zones 12b · 433 acres

Hanalei, Hawaii, sits in USDA hardiness zone 12b — enough range to grow cool-season vegetables, hardy fruit, and warm-season crops that mature before the first hard frost.

A short list that earns its place here — cassava, starfruit, allspice, and eggplant — with any one site's soil, sun, and drainage making the final cut.

Score your parcel · free

Even in Hanalei, 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 Hanalei 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 Hanalei — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

No card required · your full report in seconds

Hanalei — the short answer

Hanalei, Hawaii: USDA zone 12b, no 28°F killing freeze in Kauai County’s record — the season is year-round, across 433 acres of town.

USDA zone
12b
USDA PHZM 2023
Killing freeze
None on record
Kauai County normal — NOAA RCC ACIS 1991–2020, nearest to this town
Town area
433 acres
US Census TIGER/Line 2025

Every figure names the dataset it came from. The year-round finding is measured — Kauai County’s 30-year record, the closest to this town, contains no 28°F killing freeze — never inferred from missing dates.

Hardiness Zone Range

12b12b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 12b is Hanalei's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Hanalei's no killing freeze on record, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Hanalei

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

Season length

From county records

Hanalei has no station of its own, and Kauai County’s 30-year record — the closest to it — carries no 28°F killing freeze at all — 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

Hanalei sits in USDA hardiness zone 12b.

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

What Grows in Hanalei

Every plant below cleared Hanalei's own zone 12b and its 365-day season. Each card opens that plant's Hawaii profile. How we score.

cassava, photograph
Growing cassava in HawaiiZones 8–12Hanalei's 12b — 4 zones of cold margin.
starfruit, photograph
Hawaii starfruit guideZones 10–12Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
allspice, photograph
Allspice in HawaiiZones 10–12Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
eggplant, photograph
Eggplant: Hawaii growing notesZones 2–12Hanalei's 12b — 10 zones of cold margin.
mangosteen, photograph
Growing mangosteen in HawaiiZones 11–12Hanalei's 12b — 1 zone of cold margin.
ashwagandha, photograph
Hawaii ashwagandha guideZones 8–12Hanalei's 12b — 4 zones of cold margin.
ginger, photograph
Ginger in HawaiiZones 8–12Hanalei's 12b — 4 zones of cold margin.
pineapple, photograph
Pineapple: Hawaii growing notesZones 10–12Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
cinnamon, photograph
Growing cinnamon in HawaiiZones 10–12Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
kangkong, photograph
Hawaii kangkong guideZones 9–12Hanalei's 12b — 3 zones of cold margin.
coffee senna, photograph
Coffee senna in HawaiiZones 12–13Hanalei's 12b is its exact cold limit.
potato yam, photograph
Potato yam: Hawaii growing notesZones 9–12Hanalei's 12b — 3 zones of cold margin.
sugar cane, photograph
Growing sugar cane in HawaiiZones 9–12Hanalei's 12b — 3 zones of cold margin.
turmeric, photograph
Hawaii turmeric guideZones 8–12Hanalei's 12b — 4 zones of cold margin.
white yam, photograph
White yam in HawaiiZones 10–12Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
plumeria, photograph
Plumeria: Hawaii growing notesZones 10–12Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
dahlia (pinnata), photograph
Growing dahlia (pinnata) in HawaiiHanalei's 365 days clear the ~90 it needs.
Nootka rose, photograph
Hawaii nootka rose guideZones 8–13Hanalei's 12b — 4 zones of cold margin.
cypress vine, photograph
Cypress vine in HawaiiZones 11–12Hanalei's 12b — 1 zone of cold margin.
anthurium, photograph
Anthurium: Hawaii growing notesZones 11–12Hanalei's 12b — 1 zone of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in HawaiiZones 2–11Hanalei's 365 days clear the ~70 it needs.
brittlebush, photograph
Hawaii brittlebush guideZones 10–13Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
amaranth, photograph
Amaranth in HawaiiZones 2–11Hanalei's 365 days clear the ~30 it needs.
annual dianthus, photograph
Annual dianthus: Hawaii growing notesZones 2–11Hanalei's 365 days clear the ~60 it needs.
moringa, photograph
Growing moringa in HawaiiZones 9–12Hanalei's 12b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Mackie's pest, photograph
Hawaii mackie's pest guideZones 10–13Hanalei's 12b — 2 zones of cold margin.
dichondra, photograph
Dichondra in Hawaii
Japanese mint, photograph
Japanese mint: Hawaii growing notesZones 11–13Hanalei's 12b — 1 zone of cold margin.
Vuda blue grass, photograph
Growing vuda blue grass in HawaiiZones 8–13Hanalei's 12b — 4 zones of cold margin.
dichondra (micrantha), photograph
Hawaii dichondra (micrantha) guideHanalei's 365 days clear the ~200 it needs.

What's on the federal record near Hanalei

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

  1. CHING YOUNG VILLAGE (LOCATION OF CAPT. ZODIAC)Underground Storage Tanks · 400 ft
  2. KAUAI COUNTY HANALEI TRANSFER STATIONBrownfields · 500 ft
  3. Kauai County Hanalei Base yardUnderground Storage Tanks · 1400 ft
  4. HANALEI TRADER CORPUnderground Storage Tanks · 1800 ft
  5. 2-1229-03 Maka Ridge (W73), Kauai, HINitrate · 0.7 mi
  6. St. Regis Princeville ResortUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.1 mi
  7. PRINCEVILLE MAKAI GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE SHOPBrownfields · 1.2 mi
  8. Kauai County Hanalei Police / Fire StationUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.3 mi
  9. PRINCEVILLE CENTRAL OFFICEUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.4 mi
  10. North Shore General StoreUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.6 mi
  11. WAINIHA GENERAL STOREUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.8 mi
  12. PRINCEVILLE PRINCE Equipment Maintenance ShopUnderground Storage Tanks · 2.5 mi

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

Measured from Hanalei'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 Hanalei.

Total Sites

28

within ~10 miles of Hanalei

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

1 Superfund site (none NPL-listed)

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Hanalei

High0Moderate13Low15

Highest-Severity Sites

2-1126-02 Princeville W-2, Kauai, Hi
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
2-1126-02 Princeville W-2, Kauai, Hi
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
2-1229-03 Maka Ridge (W73), Kauai, Hi
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
2-1229-03 Maka Ridge (W73), Kauai, Hi
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
2-1333-01 Haena W-66, Kauai, Hi
Nitrate Monitoring · Well

Know Before You Grow

  • Underground tanks leak petroleum as they age — near a former filling station, test the soil.
  • On a private well, test for nitrates: above 10 mg/L the water needs treatment before irrigating.
  • Near a brownfield, raised beds of imported soil give your food clean ground.
Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Hanalei

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 Hanalei average

Your land is one point inside Hanalei

Everything above resolves to Hanalei as a whole — one PHZM band, read across 433 acres, with hard-freeze dates borrowed from Kauai 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 Hanalei Average

Hanalei Average

  • USDA Zones 12b, averaged across Hanalei
  • One soil character for all of Hanalei
  • State-average frost dates

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Hanalei's 12b
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Hanalei

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free daysYour sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Hanalei

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 Kauai 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 Hanalei

Is it too late to plant in Hanalei?

No — Hanalei has no station of its own, and Kauai County's 30-year record, the closest to it, holds no 28°F killing freeze, so the growing season is year-round and there is no last-frost date to wait for. Planting is paced by rainfall, heat and daylength instead of by frost: start heat-lovers any month, and time cool-season crops (lettuce, brassicas, peas) for the cooler, wetter half of the year or for higher ground. Succession sowing every few weeks works all year, so the limit is what you can keep watered and harvested, not the calendar.

When does frost risk typically end in Hanalei?

It doesn't — Hanalei has no station of its own, and the 1991–2020 record for Kauai County, the nearest to it, carries no 28°F killing freeze at all, so there is no spring frost date to plant after. Cold still matters with elevation: the higher you garden, the cooler the nights, and a few tropical crops sulk below about 60°F even where they never freeze.

How long is the growing season in Hanalei?

Year-round — Hanalei has no station of its own, and the 1991–2020 record for Kauai County, the closest to it, contains no 28°F killing freeze, so there is no season to measure between freezes. What paces planting instead is heat, rainfall and daylength: the hottest, wettest stretch is the hard part for cool-season crops, not winter. Elevation is the one real exception — the higher you garden, the colder the nights get.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Hanalei?

The federal record around Hanalei is a meaningful one — 28 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (16), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record under a tenth of a mile out — so a soil test before new food beds is a sensible precaution here, not a reason to hold back from growing. Remember that proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis of any one yard; the contamination map shows exactly what sits where.

Everything above is measured at Hanalei's scale — its 12b band and its no killing freeze on record. Your yard writes its own version of Hanalei'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 Hanalei’s own scale

4 of the readings below were taken at Hanalei's own scale — the 433 acres it covers and 28 documented sites around it; 5 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Hanalei's own USDA hardiness band, zones 12bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • 28 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Hanalei, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record under a tenth of a mile out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Hanalei's boundary and the 433 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 12b and a ~365-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine

Inherited from a wider read

  • The frost finding — Hanalei has no station of its own, and its county's 30-year record contains no 28°F killing freeze at allfrom Kauai County
  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Hanalei's 433 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Kauai County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Kauai County
  • The growing challenges every Hawaii grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Hawaii
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Kauai County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Hanalei's 433 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Hanalei you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 433 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Underground Storage Tanks record under a tenth of a mile 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 Hanalei-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address

More in Hawaii

Wider growing context

What grows across Hawaii

Hanalei sits outside our named growing regions, so Hawaii as a whole is its closest context here.