What Grows in Currie, Minnesota

USDA Zones 5a · 352 acres

Currie, Minnesota, sits in USDA hardiness zone 5a — a zone band wide enough that plant choice, not possibility, is the interesting question.

Well-matched crops include cabbage, cranberry, lavender, and collard greens, and the gap between "grows in the area" and "grows in your yard" is closed by soil, sun, and drainage.

Score your parcel · free

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

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Currie — the short answer

Currie, Minnesota: USDA zone 5a, about 181 days between hard freezes, across 352 acres of city.

USDA zone
5a
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Apr 19
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Oct 17
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~181
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
City area
352 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

5a5a
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 5a is Currie's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Currie's 181-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Currie

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

Season length

Measured

Currie runs about 181 days between hard freezes — a moderate growing season.

There is room for the full run of cool-season crops plus a warm-season main crop, but the calendar is tight enough that a late spring or early fall frost still decides how much finishes.

Time warm-season transplants to your last hard freeze, and a few weeks of season extension turns a near-miss harvest into a sure one.

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Currie sits in USDA hardiness zone 5a.

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 Currie is in

Currie sits in the Western Corn Belt Plains — EPA Level III, inside the wider Great Plains. That is read at Currie's own centroid rather than borrowed from Murray County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Currie

Every plant below cleared Currie's own zone 5a and its 181-day season. Each card opens that plant's Minnesota profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in MinnesotaZones 2–11Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
cranberry, photograph
Minnesota cranberry guideZones 2–7Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Lavender in MinnesotaZones 5–8Currie's 5a is its exact cold limit.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Minnesota growing notesZones 2–11Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Growing hazelnut in MinnesotaZones 4–9Currie's 5a — 1 zone of cold margin.
French tarragon, photograph
Minnesota french tarragon guideZones 3–7Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in MinnesotaZones 2–10Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
blueberry, photograph
Blueberry: Minnesota growing notesZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
St. Johns wort, photograph
Growing st. johns wort in MinnesotaZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
kale, photograph
Minnesota kale guideZones 2–11Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
apple, photograph
Apple in MinnesotaZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
lentil, photograph
Lentil: Minnesota growing notesZones 2–11Currie's 181 days clear the ~70 it needs.
okra, photograph
Growing okra in MinnesotaZones 2–12Currie's 181 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Minnesota potato guideZones 2–11Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
pumpkin, photograph
Pumpkin in MinnesotaZones 3–11Currie's 181 days clear the ~40 it needs.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Minnesota growing notesZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in MinnesotaZones 2–11Currie's 181 days clear the ~70 it needs.
azalea, photograph
Minnesota azalea guideZones 4–8Currie's 5a — 1 zone of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in MinnesotaZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: Minnesota growing notesZones 3–10Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in MinnesotaCurrie's 181 days clear the ~50 it needs.
lilac, photograph
Minnesota lilac guideZones 4–10Currie's 5a — 1 zone of cold margin.
American bittersweet, photograph
American bittersweet in MinnesotaZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
Canada anemone, photograph
Canada anemone: Minnesota growing notesZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in MinnesotaZones 3–9Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
alfalfa, photograph
Minnesota alfalfa guideZones 2–10Currie's 181 days clear the ~100 it needs.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in MinnesotaZones 2–7Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
blue spruce, photograph
Blue spruce: Minnesota growing notesZones 2–8Currie's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
annual ryegrass, photograph
Growing annual ryegrass in MinnesotaZones 3–10Currie's 181 days clear the ~90 it needs.
Canada wild rye, photograph
Minnesota canada wild rye guideZones 3–8Currie's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Currie?

Almost never — the real question is what to plant next. Cool-season crops can go in from around Mar 22; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Apr 19 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Oct 17 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. Even past midsummer there is room for a true fall garden here, and garlic planted near the close carries the momentum into next year.

What's on the federal record near Currie

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

  1. JOE SCHREIER CONSTRUCTIONBrownfields · 250 ft
  2. 106363Nitrate · 1.2 mi
  3. GERVAIS BROTHERS IICAFO · 1.5 mi
  4. MW GERVAIS FARMS LLCCAFO · 1.8 mi
  5. Lake Shetek State ParkUnderground Storage Tanks · 2.0 mi
  6. Mike N Lizs Mini MartUnderground Storage Tanks · 4.3 mi
  7. Carlson CornerUnderground Storage Tanks · 4.6 mi
  8. Harolds ServiceUnderground Storage Tanks · 5.0 mi
  9. Mn/dot Truck StationUnderground Storage Tanks · 5.0 mi
  10. Chandler Coop CardtrolUnderground Storage Tanks · 5.0 mi
  11. Mn Dept Of TransportationUnderground Storage Tanks · 5.0 mi
  12. Slayton Prairie Pride CoopUnderground Storage Tanks · 5.0 mi

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

Measured from Currie'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 Currie.

Total Sites

68

within ~10 miles of Currie

Risk Level

Moderate

Highest-severity

6 concentrated animal feeding operations

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Currie

High0Moderate28Low40

Highest-Severity Sites

100595
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
100595
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
106363
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
106363
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
106n41w15bac 02 Slayton 1
Nitrate Monitoring · Well

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Currie, two things run higher than the national average within ~10 miles of Currie — CAFO (6 sites) and Nitrate (18 sites). That's not a problem with your land — it's information about it.

CAFO: CAFOs pose a different contamination profile than chemical sources.

Nitrate: Nitrate contamination primarily comes from agricultural fertilizer runoff and failing septic systems.

Wash all produce consumed raw thoroughly, especially leafy greens grown near CAFOs.

Test well water for nitrate if you rely on a private well for irrigation (EPA standard: 10 mg/L).

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Currie

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 Currie average

Your land is one point inside Currie

Everything above resolves to Currie as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 352 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 Currie Average

Currie Average

  • USDA Zones 5a, averaged across Currie
  • One soil character for all of Currie
  • Frost dates read at Currie's scale: Apr 19 to Oct 17

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Currie's 5a
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Currie

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Currie averages 181Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Currie

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 Currie’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 Currie

When does frost risk typically end in Currie?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Currie typically lands around Apr 19, 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 May 10.

When is the first frost in Currie?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Currie typically arrives around Oct 17, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Oct 3, so the watching starts about Sep 17 — about 181 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Currie?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Currie sees about 181 frost-free days — roughly Apr 19 through Oct 17, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer May 10 to Oct 3, about 146 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Currie?

The federal record around Currie shows 68 documented sites, mostly Brownfields entries (22), the nearest Brownfields record under a tenth of a mile 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 Currie?

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

Everything above is measured at Currie's scale — its 5a band and its 181-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Currie'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 Currie’s own scale

6 of the readings below were taken at Currie's own scale — its own ~181-day season between 28°F freezes, the 352 acres it covers and 68 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Currie's own USDA hardiness band, zones 5aUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Currie's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Apr 19 and Oct 17 and the ~181-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 68 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Currie, the closest Brownfields record under a tenth of a mile out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Currie's boundary and the 352 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 5a and a ~181-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Currie's own centroid, the Western Corn Belt PlainsUS EPA Level III Ecoregions

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Currie's 352 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Murray County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Murray County
  • The growing challenges every Minnesota grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Minnesota
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Murray County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Currie's 352 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Currie you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 352 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Brownfields 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 Currie-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address

More in Minnesota

Wider growing context

What grows across Minnesota

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