What Grows in Russellville, Ohio

USDA Zones 6b · 467 acres

Russellville, Ohio, sits in USDA hardiness zone 6b — a zone band wide enough that plant choice, not possibility, is the interesting question.

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

Score your parcel · free

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

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Russellville — the short answer

Russellville, Ohio: USDA zone 6b, about 213 days between hard freezes, across 467 acres of town.

USDA zone
6b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Apr 3
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Nov 2
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~213
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Town area
467 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

6b6b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 6b is Russellville's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Russellville's 213-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Russellville

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

Season length

Measured

Russellville runs about 213 days between hard freezes — a long growing season.

There is slack for succession plantings and slow-finishing crops: many vegetables can be sown twice, and the heat-lovers have time to ripen fully.

Plan a second sowing of quick crops after the first comes out, and use the fall window most gardeners let sit idle.

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Russellville sits in USDA hardiness zone 6b.

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 Russellville is in

Russellville sits in the Eastern Corn Belt Plains — EPA Level III, inside the wider Eastern Temperate Forests. That is read at Russellville's own centroid rather than borrowed from Brown County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Russellville

Every plant below cleared Russellville's own zone 6b and its 213-day season. Each card opens that plant's Ohio profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in OhioZones 2–11Russellville's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Ohio hazelnut guideZones 4–9Russellville's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Lavender in OhioZones 5–8Russellville's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Ohio growing notesZones 2–11Russellville's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
blackberry, photograph
Growing blackberry in OhioZones 5–8Russellville's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
Ohio california poppy guideZones 6–10Russellville's 6b is its exact cold limit.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in OhioZones 2–10Russellville's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
blueberry, photograph
Blueberry: Ohio growing notesZones 3–8Russellville's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Turkish rocket, photograph
Growing turkish rocket in OhioRussellville's 213 days clear the ~90 it needs.
kale, photograph
Ohio kale guideZones 2–11Russellville's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
pawpaw, photograph
Pawpaw in OhioZones 5–9Russellville's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
angelica, photograph
Angelica: Ohio growing notesZones 4–9Russellville's 213 days clear the ~120 it needs.
lentil, photograph
Growing lentil in OhioZones 2–11Russellville's 213 days clear the ~70 it needs.
okra, photograph
Ohio okra guideZones 2–12Russellville's 213 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Potato in OhioZones 2–11Russellville's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: Ohio growing notesZones 3–10Russellville's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in OhioZones 2–11Russellville's 213 days clear the ~70 it needs.
lilac, photograph
Ohio lilac guideZones 4–10Russellville's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in OhioZones 3–8Russellville's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Ohio growing notesZones 3–8Russellville's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in OhioRussellville's 213 days clear the ~50 it needs.
Apache plume, photograph
Ohio apache plume guideZones 5–11Russellville's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
Virginia creeper, photograph
Virginia creeper in OhioZones 3–9Russellville's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: Ohio growing notesZones 6–8Russellville's 6b is its exact cold limit.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in OhioZones 3–9Russellville's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Ethiopian mustard, photograph
Ohio ethiopian mustard guideZones 4–10Russellville's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in OhioZones 2–7Russellville's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
Douglas fir, photograph
Douglas fir: Ohio growing notesZones 4–10Russellville's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
alfalfa, photograph
Growing alfalfa in OhioZones 2–10Russellville's 213 days clear the ~100 it needs.
Indian grass, photograph
Ohio indian grass guideZones 4–9Russellville's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Russellville?

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 6; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Apr 3 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Nov 2 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. Here the season winds down slowly: late sowings, a real autumn harvest, and garlic in the ground before the first hard freeze.

Documented around Russellville

Survey cells within 31 miles of Russellville checked for spotted lanternfly, none carrying a detection — a surveyed negative, not an absence of looking. Nearest documented record 40 miles off. What to watch for.

What's on the federal record near Russellville

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

  1. RUSSELVILLE 1ST STOPUnderground Storage Tanks · 250 ft
  2. ELMER L BERRYUnderground Storage Tanks · 700 ft
  3. FORMER SHELL STATIONUnderground Storage Tanks · 700 ft
  4. FAMILY DOLLAR #7447Brownfields · 2100 ft
  5. BYRD TOWNSHIP TRUSTEESUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.4 mi
  6. RED OAK STOREUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.4 mi
  7. AGRI-URBAN, INC.Underground Storage Tanks · 3.6 mi
  8. THE OUTPOSTUnderground Storage Tanks · 3.9 mi
  9. ODOT BROWN CO MAINT GARAGEUnderground Storage Tanks · 4.2 mi
  10. WAYNOKA PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOC.Underground Storage Tanks · 4.5 mi
  11. RICH OIL 3764Brownfields · 4.7 mi
  12. RICH OIL CO 3764Underground Storage Tanks · 5.0 mi

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

Measured from Russellville'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 Russellville.

Total Sites

103

within ~10 miles of Russellville

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

2 Superfund sites (none NPL-listed)

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Russellville

High1Moderate27Low75

Highest-Severity Sites

Georgetown Village Pws
PFAS Sampling · PFAS Detected
1ST Stop INC.
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
1ST Stop INC.
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Adult Detention Center
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Brown County Asphalt INC
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Russellville, two things run higher than the national average within ~10 miles of Russellville — PFAS (4 sites) and Underground Storage Tanks (78 sites). It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around 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.

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Russellville

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 Russellville average

Your land is one point inside Russellville

Everything above resolves to Russellville as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 467 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 Russellville Average

Russellville Average

  • USDA Zones 6b, averaged across Russellville
  • One soil character for all of Russellville
  • Frost dates read at Russellville's scale: Apr 3 to Nov 2

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Russellville's 6b
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Russellville

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Russellville averages 213Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Russellville

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 Russellville’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 Russellville

When does frost risk typically end in Russellville?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Russellville typically lands around Apr 3, 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 Apr 24.

When is the first frost in Russellville?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Russellville typically arrives around Nov 2, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Oct 19, so the watching starts about Oct 3 — about 213 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Russellville?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Russellville sees about 213 frost-free days — roughly Apr 3 through Nov 2, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Apr 24 to Oct 19, about 178 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Russellville?

The federal record around Russellville is a meaningful one — 103 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (78), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record under a tenth of a mile 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 Russellville?

From about Oct 3 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 Nov 2 (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 Nov 2. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Russellville's scale — its 6b band and its 213-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Russellville'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 Russellville’s own scale

7 of the readings below were taken at Russellville's own scale — its own ~213-day season between 28°F freezes, the 467 acres it covers and 103 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Russellville's own USDA hardiness band, zones 6bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Russellville's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Apr 3 and Nov 2 and the ~213-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 103 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Russellville, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record under a tenth of a mile out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Russellville's boundary and the 467 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 6b and a ~213-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Russellville's own centroid, the Eastern Corn Belt PlainsUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
  • Lanternfly survey cells around Russellville checked, none carrying a detectionlydemapr (De Bona & Helmus), 10 km survey lattice

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Russellville's 467 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Brown County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Brown County
  • The growing challenges every Ohio grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Ohio
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Brown County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Russellville's 467 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Russellville you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 467 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Underground Storage Tanks 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 Russellville-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address