What Grows in Upper Red Hook, New York

USDA Zones 6a · 128 acres

Upper Red Hook, New York, sits in USDA hardiness zone 6a — a zone band wide enough that plant choice, not possibility, is the interesting question.

Well-matched crops include cabbage, hazelnut, 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 Upper Red Hook, 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 Upper Red Hook 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 Upper Red Hook — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

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Upper Red Hook — the short answer

Upper Red Hook, New York: USDA zone 6a, about 185 days between hard freezes, across 128 acres of town.

USDA zone
6a
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Apr 21
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
~185
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Town area
128 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

6a6a
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)
Your USDA zone 6aSee the zone map →

Zone 6a is Upper Red Hook's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Upper Red Hook's 185-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Upper Red Hook

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

Season length

Measured

Upper Red Hook runs about 185 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.

Buying weeks at each end

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Upper Red Hook sits in USDA hardiness zone 6a.

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.

How hardiness zones work

USDA PHZM 2023

The kind of country Upper Red Hook is in

Upper Red Hook sits in the Northeastern Coastal Zone — EPA Level III, inside the wider Eastern Temperate Forests. That is read at Upper Red Hook's own centroid, and it is not what its county reads: Dutchess County is mostly Northeastern Highlands. The wider page above you is answering a different question about different ground.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Upper Red Hook

Every plant below cleared Upper Red Hook's own zone 6a and its 185-day season. Each card opens that plant's New York profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in New YorkZones 2–11Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
New York hazelnut guideZones 4–9Upper Red Hook's 6a — 2 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Lavender in New YorkZones 5–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 1 zone of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: New York growing notesZones 2–11Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
blackberry, photograph
Growing blackberry in New YorkZones 5–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 1 zone of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
New York california poppy guideZones 6–10Upper Red Hook's 6a is its exact cold limit.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in New YorkZones 2–10Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
cranberry, photograph
Cranberry: New York growing notesZones 2–7Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
St. Johns wort, photograph
Growing st. johns wort in New YorkZones 3–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.
kale, photograph
New York kale guideZones 2–11Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
pawpaw, photograph
Pawpaw in New YorkZones 5–9Upper Red Hook's 6a — 1 zone of cold margin.
Turkish rocket, photograph
Turkish rocket: New York growing notesUpper Red Hook's 185 days clear the ~90 it needs.
lentil, photograph
Growing lentil in New YorkZones 2–11Upper Red Hook's 185 days clear the ~70 it needs.
okra, photograph
New York okra guideZones 2–12Upper Red Hook's 185 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Potato in New YorkZones 2–11Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: New York growing notesZones 3–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in New YorkZones 2–11Upper Red Hook's 185 days clear the ~70 it needs.
azalea, photograph
New York azalea guideZones 4–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 2 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in New YorkZones 3–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: New York growing notesZones 3–10Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in New YorkUpper Red Hook's 185 days clear the ~50 it needs.
lilac, photograph
New York lilac guideZones 4–10Upper Red Hook's 6a — 2 zones of cold margin.
American bittersweet, photograph
American bittersweet in New YorkZones 3–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: New York growing notesZones 6–8Upper Red Hook's 6a is its exact cold limit.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in New YorkZones 3–9Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.
Ethiopian mustard, photograph
New York ethiopian mustard guideZones 4–10Upper Red Hook's 6a — 2 zones of cold margin.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in New YorkZones 2–7Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
blue spruce, photograph
Blue spruce: New York growing notesZones 2–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 4 zones of cold margin.
alfalfa, photograph
Growing alfalfa in New YorkZones 2–10Upper Red Hook's 185 days clear the ~100 it needs.
Canada wild rye, photograph
New York canada wild rye guideZones 3–8Upper Red Hook's 6a — 3 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Upper Red Hook?

Rarely: the season closes in stages, not all at once, and each stage has its crops. Cool-season crops can go in from around Mar 24; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Apr 21 (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 Upper Red Hook

Spotted lanternfly documented 4 miles from Upper Red Hook, first recorded 2022. What to watch for.

What's on the federal record near Upper Red Hook

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

  1. CORNUCOPIA DELIUnderground Storage Tanks · 900 ft
  2. DEVEREUX FOUNDATIONUnderground Storage Tanks · 0.8 mi
  3. JOES CLASSIC AUTO BODY LLCBrownfields · 1.1 mi
  4. BOTTINI FUEL CORP.Underground Storage Tanks · 1.4 mi
  5. REMARKABLE PAPER LLCUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.4 mi
  6. RED HOOK CSD (ELEMENTARY)Underground Storage Tanks · 1.4 mi
  7. MILL INTERMEDIATE PRIMARY ROAD SCHOOLBrownfields · 1.4 mi
  8. RED HOOK RESIDENTIAL CENTERUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.6 mi
  9. DU3189Nitrate · 2.1 mi
  10. BARD COLLEGEBrownfields · 2.2 mi
  11. RED HOOK CENTRAL SCHOOLBrownfields · 2.3 mi
  12. PARKER TRAINING ACADEMYUnderground Storage Tanks · 2.3 mi

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

Measured from Upper Red Hook'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 Upper Red Hook.

Total Sites

415

within ~10 miles of Upper Red Hook

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

3 Superfund sites (none NPL-listed)

Explore the live map
Underground Storage Tanks274Brownfields103Nitrate16Toxics Release Inventory10PFAS6

Sources Checked

within ~10 miles of Upper Red Hook

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Upper Red Hook

High2Moderate118Low295

Highest-Severity Sites

Astor Courts, LLC
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Bard College
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Best Mart
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Cornerstone of Rhinebeck, Ny
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Cornucopia Deli
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Upper Red Hook, two things run higher than the national average within ~10 miles of Upper Red Hook — PFAS (6 sites) and Underground Storage Tanks (274 sites). That's not a problem with your land — it's information about it.

PFAS: PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are called "forever chemicals" because they do not biodegrade.

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

Test irrigation water source — this is the primary pathway for PFAS to reach garden crops.

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

read your soil before you plantcontrol your inputs in containersbuild up with a clean-soil raised bedSee what's flagged near Upper Red Hook
Explore the contamination map around Upper Red Hook·New York Growing Guide
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Check your specific parcel in Upper Red Hook

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 Upper Red Hook average

Your land is one point inside Upper Red Hook

Everything above resolves to Upper Red Hook as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 128 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 Upper Red Hook Average

Upper Red Hook Average

  • ●USDA Zones 6a, averaged across Upper Red Hook
  • ●One soil character for all of Upper Red Hook
  • ●Frost dates read at Upper Red Hook's scale: Apr 21 to Oct 23

YOUR Parcel

  • ✓Your exact zone, not Upper Red Hook's 6a
  • ✓Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • ✓Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Upper Red Hook

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

Three things about your lot that Upper Red Hook averages can't show:

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Upper Red Hook averages 185Your sun & shade

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

25+ data sources read at your address, not the Upper Red Hook average

How we know this about Upper Red Hook

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 Upper Red Hook’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 Upper Red Hook

When does frost risk typically end in Upper Red Hook?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Upper Red Hook typically lands around Apr 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 May 12.

When is the first frost in Upper Red Hook?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Upper Red Hook 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 185 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Upper Red Hook?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Upper Red Hook sees about 185 frost-free days — roughly Apr 21 through Oct 23, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer May 12 to Oct 9, about 150 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Upper Red Hook?

The federal record around Upper Red Hook is a meaningful one — 415 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (274), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.2 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 Upper Red Hook?

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 Upper Red Hook's scale — its 6a band and its 185-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Upper Red Hook'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 Upper Red Hook’s own scale

7 of the readings below were taken at Upper Red Hook's own scale — its own ~185-day season between 28°F freezes, the 128 acres it covers and 415 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Upper Red Hook's own USDA hardiness band, zones 6aUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Upper Red Hook's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Apr 21 and Oct 23 and the ~185-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 415 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Upper Red Hook, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.2 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Upper Red Hook's boundary and the 128 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 6a and a ~185-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • Upper Red Hook sits in the Northeastern Coastal Zone — not the ecoregion its county mostly readsUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
  • A documented spotted-lanternfly record within reach of Upper Red Hooklydemapr (De Bona & Helmus), 10 km survey lattice

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Upper Red Hook's 128 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Dutchess County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Dutchess 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 Dutchess County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Upper Red Hook's 128 acreswhy one lot differs from the next →
  • Which side of Upper Red Hook you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 128 acresreading your own microclimate →
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.2 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 Upper Red Hook-wide figureread your own land →
The next step finer is your own address

More in New York

Dutchess County Growing Guide·New York Growing Guide
USDA PHZM•NOAA Climate Normals•US Census TIGER•PRISM Climate•EPA FRS