What Grows in Jeffersonville, Indiana

USDA Zones 7a · 22K acres

Jeffersonville, Indiana, sits in USDA hardiness zone 7a — a range where zone-matched perennials and frost-aware annual timing set what succeeds.

A short list that earns its place here — cabbage, hazelnut, california poppy, and collard greens — with any one site's soil, sun, and drainage making the final cut.

Score your parcel · free

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

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Jeffersonville — the short answer

Jeffersonville, Indiana: USDA zone 7a, about 240 days between hard freezes, across 22K acres of city.

USDA zone
7a
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Mar 21
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Nov 16
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~240
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
City area
22K acres
US Census TIGER/Line 2025

Every figure names the dataset it came from. Hard-freeze dates are this town’s own 28°F normals: light frosts run a few weeks past them, and tender transplants usually wait 2–3 weeks after the last hard freeze.

Hardiness Zone Range

7a7a
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 7a is Jeffersonville's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Jeffersonville's 240-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Jeffersonville

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

Season length

Measured

Jeffersonville runs about 240 days between hard freezes — a long growing season.

There is slack for succession plantings and slow-finishing crops: many vegetables can be sown twice, and the heat-lovers have time to ripen fully.

Plan a second sowing of quick crops after the first comes out, and use the fall window most gardeners let sit idle.

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Jeffersonville sits in USDA hardiness zone 7a.

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 Jeffersonville is in

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

What that means for soil

What Grows in Jeffersonville

Every plant below cleared Jeffersonville's own zone 7a and its 240-day season. Each card opens that plant's Indiana profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in IndianaZones 2–11Jeffersonville's 7a — 5 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Indiana hazelnut guideZones 4–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 3 zones of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
California poppy in IndianaZones 6–10Jeffersonville's 7a — 1 zone of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Indiana growing notesZones 2–11Jeffersonville's 7a — 5 zones of cold margin.
pawpaw, photograph
Growing pawpaw in IndianaZones 5–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Indiana lavender guideZones 5–8Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in IndianaZones 2–10Jeffersonville's 7a — 5 zones of cold margin.
pecan, photograph
Pecan: Indiana growing notesZones 5–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.
Roman chamomile, photograph
Growing roman chamomile in IndianaZones 3–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
kale, photograph
Indiana kale guideZones 2–11Jeffersonville's 7a — 5 zones of cold margin.
prickly pear, photograph
Prickly pear in IndianaZones 5–10Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.
lentil, photograph
Lentil: Indiana growing notesZones 2–11Jeffersonville's 240 days clear the ~70 it needs.
apple, photograph
Growing apple in IndianaZones 3–8Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
okra, photograph
Indiana okra guideZones 2–12Jeffersonville's 240 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Potato in IndianaZones 2–11Jeffersonville's 7a — 5 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: Indiana growing notesZones 3–10Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in IndianaZones 2–11Jeffersonville's 240 days clear the ~70 it needs.
Apache plume, photograph
Indiana apache plume guideZones 5–11Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in IndianaZones 3–8Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Indiana growing notesZones 3–8Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in IndianaJeffersonville's 240 days clear the ~50 it needs.
holly, photograph
Indiana holly guideZones 5–11Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.
Virginia creeper, photograph
Virginia creeper in IndianaZones 3–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: Indiana growing notesZones 6–8Jeffersonville's 7a — 1 zone of cold margin.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in IndianaZones 3–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 4 zones of cold margin.
Ethiopian mustard, photograph
Indiana ethiopian mustard guideZones 4–10Jeffersonville's 7a — 3 zones of cold margin.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in IndianaZones 2–7Jeffersonville's 7a — 5 zones of cold margin.
Douglas fir, photograph
Douglas fir: Indiana growing notesZones 4–10Jeffersonville's 7a — 3 zones of cold margin.
Japanese millet, photograph
Growing japanese millet in IndianaZones 5–10Jeffersonville's 240 days clear the ~45 it needs.
Eastern gamagrass, photograph
Indiana eastern gamagrass guideZones 5–9Jeffersonville's 7a — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Jeffersonville?

Rarely: the season closes in stages, not all at once, and each stage has its crops. Cool-season crops can go in from around Feb 21; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Mar 21 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Nov 16 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. Here the season winds down slowly: late sowings, a real autumn harvest, and garlic in the ground before the first hard freeze.

Documented around Jeffersonville

Survey cells within 31 miles of Jeffersonville checked for spotted lanternfly, none carrying a detection — a surveyed negative, not an absence of looking. Nearest documented record 50 miles off. What to watch for.

What's on the federal record near Jeffersonville

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

  1. CHARLESTOWN/RIVER RIDGEPFAS · 0 ft
  2. ORICA USA INCBrownfields · 900 ft
  3. LAROCHE INDUSTRIESUnderground Storage Tanks · 2400 ft
  4. FREUDENBERG MEDICAL MINIMALLY INVASIVE SOLUTIONSBrownfields · 2500 ft
  5. COOK COMPRESSIONBrownfields · 0.6 mi
  6. COOK COMPRESSIONToxics Release Inventory · 0.6 mi
  7. KEY ELECTRONICSToxics Release Inventory · 0.6 mi
  8. AMATROL INCBrownfields · 0.6 mi
  9. Hersco IncorporatedUnderground Storage Tanks · 0.6 mi
  10. KROGER #776-24Brownfields · 0.8 mi
  11. CRS JEFFERSONVILLEBrownfields · 0.8 mi
  12. WELLSTONE REGIONAL HOSPITALBrownfields · 0.8 mi

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

Measured from Jeffersonville'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 Jeffersonville.

Total Sites

2,163

within ~10 miles of Jeffersonville

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

15 Superfund sites (none NPL-listed)

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Jeffersonville

High3Moderate578Low1,582

Highest-Severity Sites

Indiana American Water - Charlestown
PFAS Sampling · PFAS Detected
Sellersburg Water Department
PFAS Sampling · PFAS Detected
Aircraft Specialists Incorporated
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Airgas Specialty Products
Toxics Release Inventory · 4713wrgssp5133m
Alcan Chemicals Fall Cities Warehouse
Toxics Release Inventory · 47131fllsc1415s

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Jeffersonville, two things run higher than the national average within ~10 miles of Jeffersonville — Toxics Release Inventory (156 sites) and Underground Storage Tanks (1,461 sites). It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.

Toxics Release Inventory: TRI facilities report annual chemical releases to air, water, and land.

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

Check prevailing wind direction — downwind parcels face higher exposure than upwind or crosswind locations.

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

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Jeffersonville

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 Jeffersonville average

Your land is one point inside Jeffersonville

Everything above resolves to Jeffersonville as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 22K acres. 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 city 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 Jeffersonville Average

Jeffersonville Average

  • USDA Zones 7a, averaged across Jeffersonville
  • One soil character for all of Jeffersonville
  • Frost dates read at Jeffersonville's scale: Mar 21 to Nov 16

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Jeffersonville's 7a
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Jeffersonville

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Jeffersonville averages 240Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Jeffersonville

The datasets: hardiness from the USDA ARS Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023, read at this city’s own centroid; hard-freeze dates from NOAA 1991–2020 28°F normals at Jeffersonville’s own record; 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 city grain anywhere on this page — there is no city-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 Jeffersonville

When does frost risk typically end in Jeffersonville?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Jeffersonville typically lands around Mar 21, 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 Apr 11.

When is the first frost in Jeffersonville?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Jeffersonville typically arrives around Nov 16, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Nov 2, so the watching starts about Oct 17 — about 240 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Jeffersonville?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Jeffersonville sees about 240 frost-free days — roughly Mar 21 through Nov 16, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Apr 11 to Nov 2, about 205 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Jeffersonville?

The federal record around Jeffersonville is a meaningful one — 2,163 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (1,461), the nearest PFAS 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.

How do I protect my plants from frost in Jeffersonville?

From about Oct 17 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 16 (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 16. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Jeffersonville's scale — its 7a band and its 240-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Jeffersonville'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 Jeffersonville’s own scale

7 of the readings below were taken at Jeffersonville's own scale — its own ~240-day season between 28°F freezes, the 21,809 acres it covers and 2,163 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Jeffersonville's own USDA hardiness band, zones 7aUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Jeffersonville's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Mar 21 and Nov 16 and the ~240-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 2,163 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Jeffersonville, the closest PFAS record under a tenth of a mile out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Jeffersonville's boundary and the 21,809 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 7a and a ~240-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Jeffersonville's own centroid, the Eastern Corn Belt PlainsUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
  • Lanternfly survey cells around Jeffersonville checked, none carrying a detectionlydemapr (De Bona & Helmus), 10 km survey lattice

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Jeffersonville's 21,809 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Clark County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Clark County
  • The growing challenges every Indiana grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Indiana
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Clark County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Jeffersonville's 21,809 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Jeffersonville you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 21,809 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest PFAS 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 Jeffersonville-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address