Tennessee spans USDA hardiness zones 6a-7b, with a growing season of about 220 frost-free days — a generous window with room for succession plantings and warm-season crops that need time to finish.
The raw materials of the growing year here: 45-55 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. The soil story is silt loam, clay loam, limestone-derived, and alluvial — and reading their drainage is half the battle of siting any planting. Zoom in and Tennessee resolves into Appalachia, Mississippi Delta, and Blue Ridge — distinct growing regions with distinct frost calendars. Growers here do well with tomato, pawpaw, iris, and muscadine grape — with the usual caveat that any single yard's soil, sun, and drainage cast the deciding vote.
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
Tennessee spans zones 6a-7b, 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 Tennessee — each has its own zones, soils, and signature crops.
USDA Zones
6a-7b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last Frost
Mar 20 - Apr 20
NOAA 30-yr Normals
First Frost
Oct 10 - Nov 5
NOAA 30-yr Normals
Annual Rainfall
45-55 inches
NOAA Climate Normals
Zone maps are averages across Tennessee. Your yard's slope, trees, and frost pockets shift what actually grows — see your land's exact reading.
The soil types that dominate Tennessee — 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
Moderate. Silt holds water well and releases it steadily, though the fine particles can crust after hard rain and compact under traffic.
What thrives
The full vegetable garden does well here, and small grains, corn, and leafy greens are classic silt-loam crops. Its steady moisture suits shallow-rooted plants that dislike drought stress.
No verified open-license photo yet — this loam is close kin to the loam and silt-loam profiles above.
Drainage
Slow to moderate. Water lingers in the root zone longer than in loam, which is a gift in dry summers and a challenge in wet springs.
What thrives
Heavy feeders that appreciate steady moisture — brassicas, corn, beans, and many fruit trees. Perennials with strong root systems establish well once they are through the first season.
Drainage
Good to fast: fractured limestone under the soil carries water away quickly, and shallow profiles dry sooner than deep ones.
What thrives
Lime-loving plants prosper — lavender, thyme, sage, brassicas, beets, figs, and wine grapes have limestone pedigrees worldwide. Many native wildflowers of glade and prairie are limestone specialists.
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 Tennessee's climate, soils, and growing season — each links to its full growing profile.
Too late for some crops, right on time for others — a growing season is a sequence, not a deadline. Across Tennessee, cool-season planting typically opens about four weeks before the local last hard freeze — county medians put that freeze near Feb 16, with the middle half of counties between Feb 13 and Feb 19 (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 8 and Dec 18 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. Here the calendar nearly circles: cool-season crops take the winter shift, and the next window is always close.
The plants Tennessee put its name on — cultural emblems, not growing recommendations.
Iris
Iris
Designated 1933.
Liriodendron tulipifera
Designated 1947. In our plant library — see its full growing profile.
Tomato
Designated 2003.
Plants the USDA PLANTS Database documents as native and present in Tennessee — 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 Tennessee’s USDA zones 6a-7b 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.
Heavy clay soils in the Nashville Basin
Basin clay is fertile once it drains — a raised bed handles that immediately, and yearly compost makes it permanent.
High humidity promotes disease in summer
Morning base-watering, breathing room between plants, and resistant varieties — the humid-summer basics from your extension.
Variable spring weather with late frost risk
Let your local frost normals set the schedule — Tennessee springs reward the growers who wait out the last cold snap.
For cultivar selection, pest pressure, and planting-time guidance specific to Tennessee, the UT Extension is the authoritative local source.
Safe to Grow Here?What the federal record shows across Tennessee — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Tennessee — 28,130 documented sites across 8 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 321 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
Tennessee 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 Tennessee
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around Tennessee, two things run higher than the national average — PFAS (262 sites) and Toxic Release Inventory (1,955 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.
Toxic Release Inventory: TRI facilities report annual chemical releases to air, water, and land.
Test irrigation water source — this is the primary pathway for PFAS to reach garden crops.
Check prevailing wind direction — downwind parcels face higher exposure than upwind or crosswind locations.
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
Tennessee spans USDA hardiness zones 6a-7b, per the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023. Zones reflect average annual extreme minimum temperatures from 1991–2020 weather data.
Too late for some crops, right on time for others — a growing season is a sequence, not a deadline. Across Tennessee, cool-season planting typically opens about four weeks before the local last hard freeze — county medians put that freeze near Feb 16, with the middle half of counties between Feb 13 and Feb 19 (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 8 and Dec 18 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. Here the calendar nearly circles: cool-season crops take the winter shift, and the next window is always close.
Across Tennessee, the middle half of counties see their last hard freeze (28°F) between about Feb 13 and Feb 19, with a county median near Feb 16 (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 Tennessee's counties mostly run about 292 to 308 days, with a county median near 300 (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.
Tennessee's zones 6a-7b support a wide range — strong performers include Tomato, Pawpaw, Iris, Muscadine Grape, and Tulip Poplar. 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, Tennessee spans USDA zones 6a-7b (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 Tennessee runs heavier than most — 28,130 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. Tennessee spans USDA zones 6a-7b, which sets what survives winter; last hard freezes range from about Feb 13 to Feb 19 across its counties (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and 28,130 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee.
