Maine spans USDA hardiness zones 3b-6a, with a growing season of about 150 frost-free days — a true four-season rhythm: spring greens, a full summer main crop, and a fall window that rewards planning.
The raw materials of the growing year here: 36-50 inches of annual rainfall, a median of roughly 2,500 growing-degree days (base 50°F), and about 1,800 winter chill hours for tree fruit. Underfoot it's mostly glacial till, sandy loam, rocky loam, and peat bog — and how those drain decides more about crop success than almost anything else. These conditions suit potato, blueberry, apple, and white pine — a starting list any specific site will trim or extend with its own soil, sun, and drainage.
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
Maine spans zones 3b-6a, 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
3b-6a
USDA PHZM 2023
Last Frost
May 1 - Jun 5
NOAA 30-yr Normals
First Frost
Sep 10 - Oct 10
NOAA 30-yr Normals
Annual Rainfall
36-50 inches
NOAA Climate Normals
Zone maps are averages across Maine. Your yard's slope, trees, and frost pockets shift what actually grows — see your land's exact reading.
The soil types that dominate Maine — 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
Variable by the shovelful. Sandy till drains freely; dense, compacted till (hardpan) can perch water above it after snowmelt and heavy rain.
What thrives
Apples, stone fruits, brambles, and the whole northern vegetable garden do well on till — much of New England and the upper Midwest farms it. Deep-rooted perennials work through the stony structure happily.
Drainage
Fast. The sand fraction opens the soil up, so water moves through the root zone quickly and the surface rarely stays soggy. The trade is that nutrients ride out with the water.
What thrives
Root crops love it — carrots, potatoes, radishes, and onions size up cleanly in ground they can push through. Melons, sweet potatoes, asparagus, and most herbs appreciate the warmth and the drainage.
See the glacial-till profile — rocky loam is the same stone-threaded ground.
Drainage
Good. The stones keep channels open through the profile, and rocky ground rarely waterlogs.
What thrives
Fruit trees, brambles, asparagus, herbs, and deep-rooted perennials thread between the stones happily. Root crops that need clean, straight runs — long carrots, parsnips — prefer a picked-over or raised bed.
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 Maine's climate, soils, and growing season — each links to its full growing profile.
Almost never — the real question is what to plant next. Across Maine, cool-season planting typically opens about four weeks before the local last hard freeze — county medians put that freeze near Apr 16, with the middle half of counties between Apr 13 and Apr 24 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals). Tender transplants wait two to three weeks past it, and fall planting counts back from first freezes mostly between Oct 31 and Nov 10 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. There is slack in a calendar like this — late plantings, second rounds of favorites, and a fall bench that keeps beds working.
The plants Maine put its name on — cultural emblems, not growing recommendations.
Pinus strobus
Designated 1895. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Pinus strobus
Designated 1945. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Wild blueberry
Designated 1991.
Plants the USDA PLANTS Database documents as native and present in Maine — 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 Maine’s USDA zones 3b-6a 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.
Very short growing season (100-140 frost-free days)
Fast varieties, transplants started indoors, and a cold frame on each end — Maine growers make 120 days behave like 160.
Rocky glacial soils require significant clearing
Build up instead of digging out — a raised bed over cleared ground beats a season of boulder harvesting.
Harsh winters with heavy snow and ice
Plant to your true zone and let the snow work for you — it is excellent insulation for well-chosen perennials.
For cultivar selection, pest pressure, and planting-time guidance specific to Maine, the UMaine Cooperative Extension is the authoritative local source.
Safe to Grow Here?What the federal record shows across Maine — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Maine — 10,103 documented sites across 8 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 99 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
Maine 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 Maine
Highest-Severity Sites
Know Before You Grow
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
Maine spans USDA hardiness zones 3b-6a, per the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023. Zones reflect average annual extreme minimum temperatures from 1991–2020 weather data.
Almost never — the real question is what to plant next. Across Maine, cool-season planting typically opens about four weeks before the local last hard freeze — county medians put that freeze near Apr 16, with the middle half of counties between Apr 13 and Apr 24 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals). Tender transplants wait two to three weeks past it, and fall planting counts back from first freezes mostly between Oct 31 and Nov 10 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. There is slack in a calendar like this — late plantings, second rounds of favorites, and a fall bench that keeps beds working.
Across Maine, the middle half of counties see their last hard freeze (28°F) between about Apr 13 and Apr 24, with a county median near Apr 16 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals). That marks the hard freeze, not the last light frost — light frosts can still bite for a few more weeks, so tender transplants usually wait another 2–3 weeks.
Measured between 28°F hard freezes, growing seasons across Maine's counties mostly run about 189 to 211 days, with a county median near 206 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals). Tender crops get a somewhat shorter practical window, since lighter frosts reach a few weeks past the hard-freeze dates on both ends.
Maine's zones 3b-6a support a wide range — strong performers include Potato, Blueberry, Apple, White Pine, 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, Maine spans USDA zones 3b-6a (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 Maine runs heavier than most — 10,103 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. Maine spans USDA zones 3b-6a, which sets what survives winter; last hard freezes range from about Apr 13 to Apr 24 across its counties (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and 10,103 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 Maine 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 Maine.
Maine shares its dominant growing region with these states — a useful comparison if you're weighing where a crop will behave the same way.
