What Grows in Pascoag, Rhode Island

USDA Zones 6b · 3K acres

Pascoag, Rhode Island, sits in USDA hardiness zone 6b — a range where zone-matched perennials and frost-aware annual timing set what succeeds.

A short list that earns its place here — cabbage, hazelnut, lavender, and collard greens — with any one site's soil, sun, and drainage making the final cut.

Score your parcel · free

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

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Pascoag — the short answer

Pascoag, Rhode Island: USDA zone 6b, about 203 days between hard freezes, across 3K acres of town.

USDA zone
6b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Apr 9
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Oct 29
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~203
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Town area
3K 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 Pascoag's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Pascoag's 203-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Pascoag

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

Season length

Measured

Pascoag runs about 203 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

Pascoag 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 Pascoag is in

Pascoag sits in the Northeastern Coastal Zone — EPA Level III, inside the wider Eastern Temperate Forests. That is read at Pascoag's own centroid rather than borrowed from Providence County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Pascoag

Every plant below cleared Pascoag's own zone 6b and its 203-day season. Each card opens that plant's Rhode Island profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in Rhode IslandZones 2–11Pascoag's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Rhode Island hazelnut guideZones 4–9Pascoag's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Lavender in Rhode IslandZones 5–8Pascoag's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Rhode Island growing notesZones 2–11Pascoag's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
blackberry, photograph
Growing blackberry in Rhode IslandZones 5–8Pascoag's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
Rhode Island california poppy guideZones 6–10Pascoag's 6b is its exact cold limit.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in Rhode IslandZones 2–10Pascoag's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
pawpaw, photograph
Pawpaw: Rhode Island growing notesZones 5–9Pascoag's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
Turkish rocket, photograph
Growing turkish rocket in Rhode IslandPascoag's 203 days clear the ~90 it needs.
kale, photograph
Rhode Island kale guideZones 2–11Pascoag's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
pecan, photograph
Pecan in Rhode IslandZones 5–9Pascoag's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
angelica, photograph
Angelica: Rhode Island growing notesZones 4–9Pascoag's 203 days clear the ~120 it needs.
lentil, photograph
Growing lentil in Rhode IslandZones 2–11Pascoag's 203 days clear the ~70 it needs.
okra, photograph
Rhode Island okra guideZones 2–12Pascoag's 203 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Potato in Rhode IslandZones 2–11Pascoag's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: Rhode Island growing notesZones 3–10Pascoag's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in Rhode IslandZones 2–11Pascoag's 203 days clear the ~70 it needs.
lilac, photograph
Rhode Island lilac guideZones 4–10Pascoag's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in Rhode IslandZones 3–8Pascoag's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Rhode Island growing notesZones 3–8Pascoag's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in Rhode IslandPascoag's 203 days clear the ~50 it needs.
Oregon grape, photograph
Rhode Island oregon grape guideZones 5–8Pascoag's 6b — 1 zone of cold margin.
Virginia creeper, photograph
Virginia creeper in Rhode IslandZones 3–9Pascoag's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: Rhode Island growing notesZones 6–8Pascoag's 6b is its exact cold limit.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in Rhode IslandZones 3–9Pascoag's 6b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Ethiopian mustard, photograph
Rhode Island ethiopian mustard guideZones 4–10Pascoag's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in Rhode IslandZones 2–7Pascoag's 6b — 4 zones of cold margin.
Douglas fir, photograph
Douglas fir: Rhode Island growing notesZones 4–10Pascoag's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.
alfalfa, photograph
Growing alfalfa in Rhode IslandZones 2–10Pascoag's 203 days clear the ~100 it needs.
Indian grass, photograph
Rhode Island indian grass guideZones 4–9Pascoag's 6b — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Pascoag?

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 12; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Apr 9 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Oct 29 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. With a season this long, “too late” mostly means “switch crops” — second sowings and a full fall garden are the norm, with garlic closing the year.

Documented around Pascoag

Spotted lanternfly documented 10 miles from Pascoag, first recorded 2022. What to watch for.

What's on the federal record near Pascoag

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

  1. PAQUIN SERVICE STATION (FORMERLY)Underground Storage Tanks · 700 ft
  2. PASCOAG BAKERYUnderground Storage Tanks · 700 ft
  3. C V S #1075Brownfields · 700 ft
  4. ALAN & REBECCA MADDOCKUnderground Storage Tanks · 700 ft
  5. FRANCES MORONEYUnderground Storage Tanks · 1200 ft
  6. NEW ENGLAND TELEPHONE COMPANYUnderground Storage Tanks · 1200 ft
  7. NORTHWEST RADIOLOGYBrownfields · 1300 ft
  8. MIDWAY AUTO SALESUnderground Storage Tanks · 1900 ft
  9. E.V.S. TOOL CO.Underground Storage Tanks · 2200 ft
  10. COMMUNITY BAPTIST CHURCHUnderground Storage Tanks · 2300 ft
  11. TEKNICOTE INC CTI DIVToxics Release Inventory · 2300 ft
  12. PASCOAG MAIN STREET SERVICE STATION INC.Underground Storage Tanks · 2500 ft

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

Measured from Pascoag'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 Pascoag.

Total Sites

565

within ~10 miles of Pascoag

Risk Level

High

Highest-severity

25 Superfund sites

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Pascoag

High8Moderate147Low410

Highest-Severity Sites

Davis (Gsr) Landfill
Superfund · Superfund NPL
Davis Liquid Waste
Superfund · Superfund NPL
Stamina Mills
Superfund · Superfund NPL
Western Sand & Gravel
Superfund · Superfund NPL

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Pascoag, two things run higher than the national average within ~10 miles of Pascoag — Superfund (25 sites) and PFAS (7 sites). It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.

Superfund: Superfund sites represent the most severe contamination in the federal system.

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

Commission professional soil testing before any food production (test for heavy metals, VOCs, and SVOCs).

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

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Pascoag

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 Pascoag average

Your land is one point inside Pascoag

Everything above resolves to Pascoag as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 3K 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 Pascoag Average

Pascoag Average

  • USDA Zones 6b, averaged across Pascoag
  • One soil character for all of Pascoag
  • Frost dates read at Pascoag's scale: Apr 9 to Oct 29

YOUR Parcel

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

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Pascoag

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Pascoag averages 203Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Pascoag

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 Pascoag’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 Pascoag

When does frost risk typically end in Pascoag?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Pascoag typically lands around Apr 9, 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 30.

When is the first frost in Pascoag?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Pascoag typically arrives around Oct 29, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Oct 15, so the watching starts about Sep 29 — about 203 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Pascoag?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Pascoag sees about 203 frost-free days — roughly Apr 9 through Oct 29, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Apr 30 to Oct 15, about 168 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Pascoag?

The federal record around Pascoag runs heavier than most — 565 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (240), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.1 miles out — 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.

How do I protect my plants from frost in Pascoag?

From about Sep 29 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 29 (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 29. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Pascoag's scale — its 6b band and its 203-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Pascoag'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 Pascoag’s own scale

7 of the readings below were taken at Pascoag's own scale — its own ~203-day season between 28°F freezes, the 3,245 acres it covers and 565 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Pascoag's own USDA hardiness band, zones 6bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Pascoag's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Apr 9 and Oct 29 and the ~203-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 565 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Pascoag, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.1 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Pascoag's boundary and the 3,245 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 6b and a ~203-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Pascoag's own centroid, the Northeastern Coastal ZoneUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
  • A documented spotted-lanternfly record within reach of Pascoaglydemapr (De Bona & Helmus), 10 km survey lattice

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Pascoag's 3,245 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Providence County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Providence County
  • The growing challenges every Rhode Island grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Rhode Island
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Providence County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Pascoag's 3,245 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Pascoag you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 3,245 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.1 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 Pascoag-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address

More in Rhode Island

Wider growing context

What grows across Rhode Island

Pascoag sits outside our named growing regions, so Rhode Island as a whole is its closest context here.