What Grows in Bloomingdale, Tennessee

USDA Zones 7b · 6K acres

Bloomingdale, Tennessee, sits in USDA hardiness zone 7b — a range where zone-matched perennials and frost-aware annual timing set what succeeds.

These conditions suit cabbage, prickly pear, california poppy, and collard greens — a starting list any specific site will trim or extend with its own soil, sun, and drainage.

Score your parcel · free

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

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Bloomingdale — the short answer

Bloomingdale, Tennessee: USDA zone 7b, about 222 days between hard freezes, across 6K acres of town.

USDA zone
7b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Mar 28
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Nov 5
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~222
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Town area
6K 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

7b7b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 7b is Bloomingdale's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Bloomingdale's 222-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Bloomingdale

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

Season length

Measured

Bloomingdale runs about 222 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

Bloomingdale sits in USDA hardiness zone 7b.

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 Bloomingdale is in

Bloomingdale sits in the Ridge and Valley — EPA Level III, inside the wider Eastern Temperate Forests. That is read at Bloomingdale's own centroid rather than borrowed from Sullivan County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Bloomingdale

Every plant below cleared Bloomingdale's own zone 7b and its 222-day season. Each card opens that plant's Tennessee profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in TennesseeZones 2–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 5 zones of cold margin.
prickly pear, photograph
Tennessee prickly pear guideZones 5–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 2 zones of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
California poppy in TennesseeZones 6–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 1 zone of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Tennessee growing notesZones 2–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 5 zones of cold margin.
fig, photograph
Growing fig in TennesseeZones 6–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 1 zone of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Tennessee lavender guideZones 5–8Bloomingdale's 7b — 2 zones of cold margin.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in TennesseeZones 2–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 5 zones of cold margin.
grape, photograph
Grape: Tennessee growing notesZones 6–9Bloomingdale's 7b — 1 zone of cold margin.
Turkish rocket, photograph
Growing turkish rocket in TennesseeBloomingdale's 222 days clear the ~90 it needs.
kale, photograph
Tennessee kale guideZones 2–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 5 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Hazelnut in TennesseeZones 4–9Bloomingdale's 7b — 3 zones of cold margin.
lentil, photograph
Lentil: Tennessee growing notesZones 2–11Bloomingdale's 222 days clear the ~70 it needs.
pawpaw, photograph
Growing pawpaw in TennesseeZones 5–9Bloomingdale's 7b — 2 zones of cold margin.
okra, photograph
Tennessee okra guideZones 2–12Bloomingdale's 222 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Potato in TennesseeZones 2–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 5 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: Tennessee growing notesZones 3–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 4 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in TennesseeZones 2–11Bloomingdale's 222 days clear the ~70 it needs.
Apache plume, photograph
Tennessee apache plume guideZones 5–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 2 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in TennesseeZones 3–8Bloomingdale's 7b — 4 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Tennessee growing notesZones 3–8Bloomingdale's 7b — 4 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in TennesseeBloomingdale's 222 days clear the ~50 it needs.
holly, photograph
Tennessee holly guideZones 5–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 2 zones of cold margin.
Virginia creeper, photograph
Virginia creeper in TennesseeZones 3–9Bloomingdale's 7b — 4 zones of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: Tennessee growing notesZones 6–8Bloomingdale's 7b — 1 zone of cold margin.
Douglas fir, photograph
Growing douglas fir in TennesseeZones 4–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Ethiopian mustard, photograph
Tennessee ethiopian mustard guideZones 4–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in TennesseeZones 2–7Bloomingdale's 7b — 5 zones of cold margin.
western red cedar, photograph
Western red cedar: Tennessee growing notesZones 4–10Bloomingdale's 7b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Japanese millet, photograph
Growing japanese millet in TennesseeZones 5–10Bloomingdale's 222 days clear the ~45 it needs.
ajuga, photograph
Tennessee ajuga guideZones 5–11Bloomingdale's 7b — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Bloomingdale?

For most of the year, no — what changes is which crops still fit the days remaining. Cool-season crops can go in from around Feb 28; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Mar 28 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Nov 5 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. There is slack in a calendar like this — late plantings, second rounds of favorites, and a fall bench that keeps beds working.

Documented around Bloomingdale

Spotted lanternfly documented 15 miles from Bloomingdale, first recorded 2023. What to watch for.

What's on the federal record near Bloomingdale

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

  1. Bowman Zinc ProspectMining · 1100 ft
  2. BowmanMining · 1100 ft
  3. Bloomingdale FinaUnderground Storage Tanks · 2200 ft
  4. Bay's Mart No. 5Underground Storage Tanks · 0.5 mi
  5. Roadrunner Market #138Underground Storage Tanks · 0.6 mi
  6. Sunoco #0937-3598Underground Storage Tanks · 0.7 mi
  7. Bloomingdale 66Underground Storage Tanks · 0.7 mi
  8. Cherokee Oil, Inc.-Bulk PlantUnderground Storage Tanks · 0.8 mi
  9. Kerr-mcgee #124-2141Underground Storage Tanks · 0.9 mi
  10. Handy Andy MarketUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.0 mi
  11. A And W MarketUnderground Storage Tanks · 1.0 mi
  12. Fasmart No. 469Underground Storage Tanks · 1.1 mi

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

Measured from Bloomingdale'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 Bloomingdale.

Total Sites

523

within ~10 miles of Bloomingdale

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

4 Superfund sites (none NPL-listed)

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Bloomingdale

High2Moderate138Low383

Highest-Severity Sites

Bloomingdale Utility District
PFAS Sampling · PFAS Detected
Aarberg Printing Inks CO
Toxics Release Inventory · 37660strhn500ti
Agc Glass Company North America Kingsport, Tn
Toxics Release Inventory · 3766wgcgls14lin
Air Products & Chemicals INC. Kingsport Rads Tn Facility
Toxics Release Inventory · 37662rprdc440in
Air Products Industrial Development
Toxics Release Inventory · 37660rprdc2000m

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Bloomingdale, Underground Storage Tanks runs higher than the national average — 404 sites within ~10 miles of Bloomingdale. It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.

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.

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Bloomingdale

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 Bloomingdale average

Your land is one point inside Bloomingdale

Everything above resolves to Bloomingdale as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 6K 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 Bloomingdale Average

Bloomingdale Average

  • USDA Zones 7b, averaged across Bloomingdale
  • One soil character for all of Bloomingdale
  • Frost dates read at Bloomingdale's scale: Mar 28 to Nov 5

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Bloomingdale's 7b
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Bloomingdale

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Bloomingdale averages 222Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Bloomingdale

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 Bloomingdale’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 Bloomingdale

When does frost risk typically end in Bloomingdale?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Bloomingdale typically lands around Mar 28, 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 18.

When is the first frost in Bloomingdale?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Bloomingdale typically arrives around Nov 5, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Oct 22, so the watching starts about Oct 6 — about 222 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Bloomingdale?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Bloomingdale sees about 222 frost-free days — roughly Mar 28 through Nov 5, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Apr 18 to Oct 22, about 187 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Bloomingdale?

The federal record around Bloomingdale is a meaningful one — 523 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (404), the nearest Mining 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 Bloomingdale?

From about Oct 6 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 5 (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 5. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Bloomingdale's scale — its 7b band and its 222-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Bloomingdale'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 Bloomingdale’s own scale

7 of the readings below were taken at Bloomingdale's own scale — its own ~222-day season between 28°F freezes, the 6,251 acres it covers and 523 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Bloomingdale's own USDA hardiness band, zones 7bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Bloomingdale's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about Mar 28 and Nov 5 and the ~222-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 523 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Bloomingdale, the closest Mining record about 0.2 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Bloomingdale's boundary and the 6,251 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 7b and a ~222-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Bloomingdale's own centroid, the Ridge and ValleyUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
  • A documented spotted-lanternfly record within reach of Bloomingdalelydemapr (De Bona & Helmus), 10 km survey lattice

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Bloomingdale's 6,251 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Sullivan County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Sullivan County
  • The growing challenges every Tennessee grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Tennessee
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Sullivan County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Bloomingdale's 6,251 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Bloomingdale you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 6,251 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Mining 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 Bloomingdale-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address