North Carolina spans USDA hardiness zones 5b-8b, with a growing season of about 220 frost-free days — long enough to run two plantings of many vegetables and still ripen the heat-lovers.
The raw materials of the growing year here: 40-60 inches of annual rainfall, a median of roughly 4,200 growing-degree days (base 50°F), and about 900 winter chill hours for tree fruit. On the soil map, red clay (Piedmont), sandy loam (Coastal), mountain loam, and alluvial dominate — and drainage is the trait that separates an easy bed from a project. Zoom in and North Carolina resolves into Appalachia, Piedmont, and Tidewater & Chesapeake — distinct growing regions with distinct frost calendars. These conditions suit sweet potato, blueberry, muscadine grape, and dogwood — 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)•USDA hardiness sub-region map•EPA FRS•USDA PLANTS•Growable Ground suitability scoring
North Carolina spans zones 5b-8b, 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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Distinct growing regions within North Carolina — each has its own zones, soils, and signature crops.
USDA Zones
5b-8b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last Frost
Mar 10 - May 5
NOAA 30-yr Normals
First Frost
Oct 5 - Nov 15
NOAA 30-yr Normals
Annual Rainfall
40-60 inches
NOAA Climate Normals
Zone maps are averages across North Carolina. Your yard's slope, trees, and frost pockets shift what actually grows — see your land's exact reading.
The soil types that dominate North Carolina — 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
Slow. Red clay seals under pounding rain and sheds water across the surface, then holds tight to what soaks in.
What thrives
Okra, southern peas, sweet potatoes, and muscadines are traditional red-clay performers, and many fruit trees root deep into it once through the first year. Azaleas and blueberries appreciate its typical acidity.
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.
No single photo represents mountain loam honestly — it changes bench to bench. See the loam profile above for the base texture.
Drainage
Usually good to fast, because slopes shed water and the rock fraction keeps the profile open. South-facing ground dries markedly faster than north-facing.
What thrives
Cool-season vegetables, berries, and hardy perennials suited to the elevation. Short seasons matter more than the soil here — choose varieties bred for quick maturity.
Drainage
Usually good: rivers sort their loads, and most alluvial soils have enough sand and silt to move water while holding plenty for roots. Low-lying pockets can run wet.
What thrives
Nearly everything — vegetables, orchards, vines, and berries all prosper on alluvium. Its depth lets roots go as far down as they care to.
Soil data: USDA NRCS SSURGO · Soil types explained
Plants well-suited to North Carolina's climate, soils, and growing season — each links to its full growing profile.
Usually not — gardeners here simply switch what goes in the ground as the season moves. Across North Carolina, cool-season planting typically opens about four weeks before the local last hard freeze — county medians put that freeze near Feb 17, with the middle half of counties between Feb 6 and Feb 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 Dec 2 and Dec 21 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. And with a calendar this mild, the honest answer is that planting barely stops — winter opens seasons colder regions never see.
The plants North Carolina put its name on — cultural emblems, not growing recommendations.
Cornus florida
Designated 1941. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Pine
Pinus
Designated 1963.
Designated 2001. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Scuppernong grape
Designated 2001.
Designated 1995. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Plants the USDA PLANTS Database documents as native and present in North Carolina — 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 North Carolina’s USDA zones 5b-8b 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.
Red Piedmont clay is hard to work and drains poorly
Red clay rewards patience — compost opens it over seasons, and a raised bed gets you harvesting in the meantime.
Humidity drives significant disease pressure
Airflow, morning base-watering, and resistant varieties — the humid-South trio your extension's lists are built around.
Hurricane risk on the coastal plain
On the coastal plain, favor wind-tough perennials and stake young trees well ahead of storm season.
For cultivar selection, pest pressure, and planting-time guidance specific to North Carolina, the NC State Extension is the authoritative local source.
Safe to Grow Here?What the federal record shows across North Carolina — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across North Carolina — 45,236 documented sites across 8 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 464 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
North Carolina 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 North Carolina
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around North Carolina, Underground Storage Tanks runs higher than the national average — 28,735 sites nearby. Knowing it is half the work — and it's nothing a thoughtful grower can't plan for.
Underground Storage Tanks: Underground storage tanks are the single most common source of soil contamination near homes and gardens.
Use raised beds with imported soil — this eliminates the primary soil-contact pathway.
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
North Carolina spans USDA hardiness zones 5b-8b, per the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023. Zones reflect average annual extreme minimum temperatures from 1991–2020 weather data.
Usually not — gardeners here simply switch what goes in the ground as the season moves. Across North Carolina, cool-season planting typically opens about four weeks before the local last hard freeze — county medians put that freeze near Feb 17, with the middle half of counties between Feb 6 and Feb 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 Dec 2 and Dec 21 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. And with a calendar this mild, the honest answer is that planting barely stops — winter opens seasons colder regions never see.
Across North Carolina, the middle half of counties see their last hard freeze (28°F) between about Feb 6 and Feb 24, with a county median near Feb 17 (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 North Carolina's counties mostly run about 280 to 309 days, with a county median near 297 (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.
North Carolina's zones 5b-8b support a wide range — strong performers include Sweet Potato, Blueberry, Muscadine Grape, Dogwood, and Tomato. 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, North Carolina spans USDA zones 5b-8b (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 North Carolina runs heavier than most — 45,236 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. North Carolina spans USDA zones 5b-8b, which sets what survives winter; last hard freezes range from about Feb 6 to Feb 24 across its counties (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and 45,236 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina.
North Carolina shares its dominant growing region with these states — a useful comparison if you're weighing where a crop will behave the same way.
