What Grows in Blodgett Mills, New York

USDA Zones 5b · 1K acres

Blodgett Mills, New York, sits in USDA hardiness zone 5b — enough range to grow cool-season vegetables, hardy fruit, and warm-season crops that mature before the first hard frost.

Reliable performers under these conditions include cabbage, cranberry, lavender, and collard greens; what your own ground favors still comes down to its soil, sun, and drainage.

Score your parcel · free

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

No card required · your full report in seconds

Blodgett Mills — the short answer

Blodgett Mills, New York: USDA zone 5b, about 182 days between hard freezes, across 1K acres of town.

USDA zone
5b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Apr 24
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Oct 23
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~182
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Town area
1K 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

5b5b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 5b is Blodgett Mills's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Blodgett Mills's 182-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Blodgett Mills

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

Season length

Measured

Blodgett Mills runs about 182 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

Blodgett Mills sits in USDA hardiness zone 5b.

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 Blodgett Mills is in

Blodgett Mills sits in the Northern Allegheny Plateau — EPA Level III, inside the wider Eastern Temperate Forests. That is read at Blodgett Mills's own centroid rather than borrowed from Cortland County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Blodgett Mills

Every plant below cleared Blodgett Mills's own zone 5b and its 182-day season. Each card opens that plant's New York profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in New YorkZones 2–11Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
cranberry, photograph
New York cranberry guideZones 2–7Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Lavender in New YorkZones 5–8Blodgett Mills's 5b is its exact cold limit.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: New York growing notesZones 2–11Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Growing hazelnut in New YorkZones 4–9Blodgett Mills's 5b — 1 zone of cold margin.
St. Johns wort, photograph
New York st. johns wort guideZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in New YorkZones 2–10Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
blueberry, photograph
Blueberry: New York growing notesZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
Turkish rocket, photograph
Growing turkish rocket in New YorkBlodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~90 it needs.
kale, photograph
New York kale guideZones 2–11Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
blackberry, photograph
Blackberry in New YorkZones 5–8Blodgett Mills's 5b is its exact cold limit.
lentil, photograph
Lentil: New York growing notesZones 2–11Blodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~70 it needs.
okra, photograph
Growing okra in New YorkZones 2–12Blodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
New York potato guideZones 2–11Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
pumpkin, photograph
Pumpkin in New YorkZones 3–11Blodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~40 it needs.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: New York growing notesZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in New YorkZones 2–11Blodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~70 it needs.
azalea, photograph
New York azalea guideZones 4–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 1 zone of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in New YorkZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: New York growing notesZones 3–10Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in New YorkBlodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~50 it needs.
lilac, photograph
New York lilac guideZones 4–10Blodgett Mills's 5b — 1 zone of cold margin.
American bittersweet, photograph
American bittersweet in New YorkZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
Canada anemone, photograph
Canada anemone: New York growing notesZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in New YorkZones 3–9Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.
alfalfa, photograph
New York alfalfa guideZones 2–10Blodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~100 it needs.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in New YorkZones 2–7Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
blue spruce, photograph
Blue spruce: New York growing notesZones 2–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 3 zones of cold margin.
annual ryegrass, photograph
Growing annual ryegrass in New YorkZones 3–10Blodgett Mills's 182 days clear the ~90 it needs.
Canada wild rye, photograph
New York canada wild rye guideZones 3–8Blodgett Mills's 5b — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Blodgett Mills?

For most of the year, no — what changes is which crops still fit the days remaining. Cool-season crops can go in from around Mar 27; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Apr 24 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Oct 23 — 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.

Documented around Blodgett Mills

Spotted lanternfly documented 20 miles from Blodgett Mills, first recorded 2020. What to watch for.

What's on the federal record near Blodgett Mills

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

  1. K&B PLASTIC INDUSTRIESToxics Release Inventory · 0.5 mi
  2. C1027Nitrate · 0.7 mi
  3. NYSDOT BIN 1031352Brownfields · 1.4 mi
  4. NYSDOT BIN 1031351Brownfields · 1.4 mi
  5. POLKVILLE CRUSHED STONE/SUIT-KOTE TERMINALToxics Release Inventory · 1.4 mi
  6. MOHAWK VALLEY OIL CORTLAND TERMINALToxics Release Inventory · 1.7 mi
  7. MICROBAC CORTLAND NYBrownfields · 1.8 mi
  8. CAZENOVIA EQ CO OF CORTLANDBrownfields · 2.1 mi
  9. INTERTEK TESTING SERVICESBrownfields · 2.2 mi
  10. CORTLAND LINE COBrownfields · 2.2 mi
  11. CORTLAND LINE COToxics Release Inventory · 2.2 mi
  12. GRAPHICS PLUS PRINTING INCBrownfields · 2.2 mi

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

Measured from Blodgett Mills'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 Blodgett Mills.

Total Sites

306

within ~10 miles of Blodgett Mills

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

4 Superfund sites

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Blodgett Mills

High2Moderate159Low145

Highest-Severity Sites

Cortlandville Town Water
PFAS Sampling · PFAS Detected
Rosen Brothers Scrap Yard/Dump
Superfund · Superfund NPL
7-990118 Gregg'S Marathon Supermarket
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
7-990131 Express Mart # 324
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
7-990134 Sunoco # 0267-1741
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Blodgett Mills, two things run higher than the national average within ~10 miles of Blodgett Mills — CAFO (24 sites) and Nitrate (124 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 Blodgett Mills

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 Blodgett Mills average

Your land is one point inside Blodgett Mills

Everything above resolves to Blodgett Mills as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 1K 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 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 Blodgett Mills Average

Blodgett Mills Average

  • USDA Zones 5b, averaged across Blodgett Mills
  • One soil character for all of Blodgett Mills
  • Frost dates read at Blodgett Mills's scale: Apr 24 to Oct 23

YOUR Parcel

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

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Blodgett Mills

Pull a site-specific report for your exact address in Blodgett Mills, New York — soil, sun, drainage, frost risk, and scored plant recommendations.

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Blodgett Mills averages 182Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Blodgett Mills

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 Blodgett Mills’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 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 Blodgett Mills

When does frost risk typically end in Blodgett Mills?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Blodgett Mills typically lands around Apr 24, 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 15.

When is the first frost in Blodgett Mills?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Blodgett Mills typically arrives around Oct 23, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Oct 9, so the watching starts about Sep 23 — about 182 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Blodgett Mills?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Blodgett Mills sees about 182 frost-free days — roughly Apr 24 through Oct 23, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer May 15 to Oct 9, about 147 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Blodgett Mills?

The federal record around Blodgett Mills is a meaningful one — 306 documented sites, mostly Nitrate entries (124), the nearest Toxics Release Inventory record about 0.5 miles 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 Blodgett Mills?

From about Sep 23 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 23 (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 23. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Blodgett Mills's scale — its 5b band and its 182-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Blodgett Mills'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 Blodgett Mills’s own scale

7 of the readings below were taken at Blodgett Mills's own scale — its own ~182-day season between 28°F freezes, the 1,391 acres it covers and 306 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Blodgett Mills's own USDA hardiness band, zones 5bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Blodgett Mills's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Apr 24 and Oct 23 and the ~182-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 306 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Blodgett Mills, the closest Toxics Release Inventory record about 0.5 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Blodgett Mills's boundary and the 1,391 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 5b and a ~182-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Blodgett Mills's own centroid, the Northern Allegheny PlateauUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
  • A documented spotted-lanternfly record within reach of Blodgett Millslydemapr (De Bona & Helmus), 10 km survey lattice

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Blodgett Mills's 1,391 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Cortland County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Cortland County
  • The growing challenges every New York grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom New York
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Cortland County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Blodgett Mills's 1,391 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Blodgett Mills you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 1,391 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Toxics Release Inventory record about 0.5 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 Blodgett Mills-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address