What Grows in Comfort, Texas

USDA Zones 8b · 2K acres

Comfort, Texas, sits in USDA hardiness zone 8b — enough range to grow cool-season vegetables, hardy fruit, and warm-season crops that mature before the first hard frost.

Expect cabbage, fig, california poppy, and collard greens to be strong candidates here; the deciding factors on any one parcel stay local — soil, sun, and drainage.

Score your parcel · free

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

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Comfort — the short answer

Comfort, Texas: USDA zone 8b, about 279 days between hard freezes, across 2K acres of town.

USDA zone
8b
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
Feb 22
Kendall County normal — NOAA 1991–2020, nearest to this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Nov 28
Kendall County normal — NOAA 1991–2020, nearest to this town
Days between freezes
~279
Kendall County normal — NOAA 1991–2020, nearest to this town
Town area
2K acres
US Census TIGER/Line 2025

Every figure names the dataset it came from. No 30-year normal resolves at this town’s own centroid, so the hard-freeze dates are Kendall County’s — the closest measured record, labelled as such rather than passed off as local.

Hardiness Zone Range

8b8b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 8b is Comfort's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Comfort's 279-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Comfort

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

Season length

From county records

Comfort runs about 279 days between hard freezes (read from Kendall County, the closest normal to Comfort) — close to year-round growing.

Frost is rarely the limit here; winter plantings are as real as summer ones, and the harder question is which crops shrug off the summer heat.

Grow cool-season crops through the mild winter, and choose heat-tolerant varieties for the summer beds.

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Comfort sits in USDA hardiness zone 8b.

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 Comfort is in

Comfort sits in the Edwards Plateau — EPA Level III, inside the wider Great Plains. That is read at Comfort's own centroid rather than borrowed from Kendall County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Comfort

Every plant below cleared Comfort's own zone 8b and its 279-day season. Each card opens that plant's Texas profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in TexasZones 2–11Comfort's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
fig, photograph
Texas fig guideZones 6–10Comfort's 8b — 2 zones of cold margin.
California poppy, photograph
California poppy in TexasZones 6–10Comfort's 8b — 2 zones of cold margin.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Texas growing notesZones 2–11Comfort's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
loquat, photograph
Growing loquat in TexasZones 7–10Comfort's 8b — 1 zone of cold margin.
rosemary, photograph
Texas rosemary guideZones 8–10Comfort's 8b is its exact cold limit.
kale, photograph
Kale in TexasZones 2–11Comfort's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
pomegranate, photograph
Pomegranate: Texas growing notesZones 7–10Comfort's 8b — 1 zone of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Growing lavender in TexasZones 5–8Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
lentil, photograph
Texas lentil guideZones 2–11Comfort's 279 days clear the ~70 it needs.
prickly pear, photograph
Prickly pear in TexasZones 5–10Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
okra, photograph
Okra: Texas growing notesZones 2–12Comfort's 279 days clear the ~50 it needs.
almond, photograph
Growing almond in TexasZones 5–9Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
potato, photograph
Texas potato guideZones 2–11Comfort's 8b — 6 zones of cold margin.
pumpkin, photograph
Pumpkin in TexasZones 3–11Comfort's 279 days clear the ~40 it needs.
iris, photograph
Iris: Texas growing notesZones 3–10Comfort's 8b — 5 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in TexasZones 2–11Comfort's 279 days clear the ~70 it needs.
Apache plume, photograph
Texas apache plume guideZones 5–11Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in TexasZones 3–8Comfort's 8b — 5 zones of cold margin.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Texas growing notesZones 3–8Comfort's 8b — 5 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in TexasComfort's 279 days clear the ~50 it needs.
holly, photograph
Texas holly guideZones 5–11Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Carolina jessamine, photograph
Carolina jessamine in TexasZones 7–10Comfort's 8b — 1 zone of cold margin.
tulip, photograph
Tulip: Texas growing notesZones 6–8Comfort's 8b — 2 zones of cold margin.
redbud, photograph
Growing redbud in TexasZones 5–11Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
pearl millet, photograph
Texas pearl millet guideZones 5–11Comfort's 279 days clear the ~60 it needs.
ajuga, photograph
Ajuga in TexasZones 5–11Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.
Douglas fir, photograph
Douglas fir: Texas growing notesZones 4–10Comfort's 8b — 4 zones of cold margin.
phacelia, photograph
Growing phacelia in TexasZones 2–11Comfort's 279 days clear the ~100 it needs.
liriope, photograph
Texas liriope guideZones 5–11Comfort's 8b — 3 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Comfort?

Almost never — the real question is what to plant next. Cool-season crops can go in from around Jan 25; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near Feb 22 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Nov 28 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. With almost year-round growing weather, timing is about heat and rainfall more than frost — some bench is always in play.

What's on the federal record near Comfort

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

  1. COMFORT EXXONUnderground Storage Tanks · 1700 ft
  2. COMFORT COUNTRY STOREUnderground Storage Tanks · 1800 ft
  3. COMFORT SERVICE CENTERUnderground Storage Tanks · 2000 ft
  4. HOLEKAMP FEED STOREUnderground Storage Tanks · 2100 ft
  5. S & R MOTORSUnderground Storage Tanks · 2200 ft
  6. HILL COUNTRY STOPUnderground Storage Tanks · 2300 ft
  7. VALLEY MART 11Underground Storage Tanks · 2600 ft
  8. RJ-68-01-3 (Comfort 2)Nitrate · 0.5 mi
  9. COMFORT FOOD MARTUnderground Storage Tanks · 0.7 mi
  10. LOVES TRAVEL STOP 464Underground Storage Tanks · 0.7 mi
  11. RJ-68-01-2 (Comfort 1)Nitrate · 0.9 mi
  12. JAMES AVERY CRAFTSMANToxics Release Inventory · 0.9 mi

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

Measured from Comfort'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 Comfort.

Total Sites

37

within ~10 miles of Comfort

Risk Level

Moderate

Highest-severity

1 Toxics Release Inventory facility

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Comfort

High1Moderate27Low9

Highest-Severity Sites

Comfort Country Store
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Comfort Food Mart
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
Hill Country Stop
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)
James Avery Craftsman
Toxics Release Inventory · 7801wjmsvr15ush
Loves Travel Stop 464
Underground Storage Tanks · Open UST(S)

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Comfort, Nitrate runs higher than the national average — 18 sites within ~10 miles of Comfort. Knowing it is half the work — and it's nothing a thoughtful grower can't plan for.

Nitrate: Nitrate contamination primarily comes from agricultural fertilizer runoff and failing septic systems.

Test well water for nitrate if you rely on a private well for irrigation (EPA standard: 10 mg/L).

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Comfort

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 Comfort average

Your land is one point inside Comfort

Everything above resolves to Comfort as a whole — one PHZM band, read across 2K acres, with hard-freeze dates borrowed from Kendall County’s record because no 30-year normal resolves at this town’s own centroid. 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 Comfort Average

Comfort Average

  • USDA Zones 8b, averaged across Comfort
  • One soil character for all of Comfort
  • Frost dates read at Comfort's scale: Feb 22 to Nov 28

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Comfort's 8b
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Comfort

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Comfort averages 279Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Comfort

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 Kendall County’s record, because none resolves here; 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 Comfort

When does frost risk typically end in Comfort?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Comfort typically lands around Feb 22, 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 Mar 15.

When is the first frost in Comfort?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Comfort typically arrives around Nov 28, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Nov 14, so the watching starts about Oct 29 — about 279 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Comfort?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Comfort sees about 279 frost-free days — roughly Feb 22 through Nov 28, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Mar 15 to Nov 14, about 244 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Comfort?

The federal record around Comfort shows 37 documented sites, mostly Nitrate entries (18), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.3 miles out — a typical footprint for a growing area, and proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis of any one yard. It's worth seeing which recorded sites sit closest to where you grow, and testing the soil before new food beds near any of them.

How do I protect my plants from frost in Comfort?

From about Oct 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 Nov 28 (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 28. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Comfort's scale — its 8b band and its 279-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Comfort'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 Comfort’s own scale

5 of the readings below were taken at Comfort's own scale — the 2,219 acres it covers and 37 documented sites around it; 5 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Comfort's own USDA hardiness band, zones 8bUSDA PHZM 2023
  • 37 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Comfort, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.3 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Comfort's boundary and the 2,219 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 8b and a ~279-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Comfort's own centroid, the Edwards PlateauUS EPA Level III Ecoregions

Inherited from a wider read

  • The 28°F hard-freeze dates — Comfort has no normal of its own, so its county's is the closest measured readfrom Kendall County
  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Comfort's 2,219 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Kendall County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Kendall County
  • The growing challenges every Texas grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Texas
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Kendall County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Comfort's 2,219 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Comfort you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 2,219 acresreading your own microclimate
  • How close that record sits to YOUR lot — the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.3 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 Comfort-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address