Sweetwater County, in Wyoming, sits in USDA hardiness zone 5b — room for a real mix of vegetables, fruit, and perennials matched to the local frost calendar.
These conditions suit cabbage, cranberry, lavender, and collard greens — a starting list any specific site will trim or extend with its own soil, sun, and drainage.
Grounded in USDA PHZM 2023 · Growable Ground suitability scoring · NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
Sweetwater County holds more than one microclimate.
Soils and elevations shift across Sweetwater County, so your frost dates and drainage aren't the county average. 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 Sweetwater County — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
No card required · your full report in seconds
Sweetwater County — the short answer
Sweetwater County, Wyoming: USDA zone 5b, about 146 days between hard freezes, across 6.7M acres.
- USDA zone
- 5b
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Last hard freeze (28°F)
- May 11
- NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F
- First hard freeze (28°F)
- Oct 4
- NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F
- Days between freezes
- ~146
- NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F
- County area
- 6.7M acres
- US Census TIGER/Line 2025
Every figure names the dataset it came from. Hard-freeze dates are county 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
Zone 5b is Sweetwater County's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Sweetwater County's 146-day season, see what your own ground reads.
Heat in Sweetwater County
Across a year, Sweetwater County accumulates about 1,550 growing degree days above 50°F, about 324 fewer than the middle Wyoming county — ahead of 6 of Wyoming’s 23 counties. Degree days are the heat a crop actually gets to work with — more of them is more room to ripen a long-season crop before the freeze closes the window.
Grounded in PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University — 1991–2020 monthly normals
Soil in Sweetwater County
Across Sweetwater County, the ground is predominantly Aridisols, where Scooby, Kandaly, and Hangmans are the most extensive named soil series. The soil is generally well drained with a fine sandy loam surface. Topsoil pH runs about 7.7–8.2, moderately alkaline. Rainfall drains through hydrologic group D soils.
Soil order
Aridisols
Drainage
Well drained
Hydric soils
0%
Soil still varies lot by lot — soil types explained.
How the ground varies across Sweetwater County
The USDA soil survey maps 47% of Sweetwater County as well drained — but another 3% drains differently: 2% somewhat excessively drained.
Scooby is the most extensive named soil at 3% of mapped acres, then Kandaly (3%) and Hangmans (2%).
Which of them your own lot sits on is a parcel question, not a county one. Check your address for the survey at your boundary.
What this means for growing in Sweetwater County
Each reading below is measured for Sweetwater County itself — here is what it means for a garden here, and the move an experienced grower makes about it.
Drainage
MeasuredThe dominant soils across Sweetwater County are well drained, in hydrologic group D — ground that drains quickly.
The upside is soil you can work early in spring and roots that never drown; the cost is that fast-draining ground dries out fast and leaches nutrients away before plants can use them.
Work in compost and mulch to hold moisture and feed, and water more often in short doses than deep and rarely.
USDA NRCS SSURGO
Surface pH
MeasuredTopsoil across Sweetwater County runs about pH 7.7–8.2, on the alkaline side.
Many vegetables cope, but acid-lovers like blueberries struggle, and iron and manganese lock up above about pH 7.5 — leaves yellow between the veins even in rich soil.
Elemental sulfur and generous organic matter lower pH slowly for the beds that need it; test first so you add only what the soil actually calls for.
USDA NRCS SSURGO
Season length
MeasuredSweetwater County runs about 146 days between hard freezes — a short growing season.
Long-maturing crops like melons, sweet potatoes, and winter squash can run out of runway before the first hard freeze, ripening late or not at all.
Lead with fast-maturing varieties, and stretch the season on both ends with cold frames, low tunnels, or a greenhouse.
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
Winter hardiness
MeasuredSweetwater County sits in USDA hardiness zone 5b.
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 Sweetwater County is in
Sweetwater County sits in the Wyoming Basin — EPA Level III, inside the wider North American Deserts. One consistent ecological setting across the whole county.
What Grows in Sweetwater County
We scored all 1,086 plants against Sweetwater County's own USDA zone 5b and its own 146-day season between hard freezes, using the same matching engine that runs a full parcel report. These cleared both. Sun, soil pH and drainage vary lot by lot — those are the parcel questions below. Each card opens that plant's Wyoming profile.
Is it too late to plant in Sweetwater County?
Almost never — the real question is what to plant next. Cool-season crops can go in from around Apr 13; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near May 11 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Oct 4 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. When the window is tight, the fall moves are quick ones — baby greens, radishes, and garlic set for next season.
Documented around Sweetwater County
- monarch butterfly3 documented records
Sighting records, so they follow observers as much as insects.
What gets applied to farmland in Sweetwater County
USGS estimates 2,476 lb of Glyphosate on Sweetwater County farmland in 2019, its largest by weight, ahead of 2,4-d (2,305 lb) and Triclopyr (2,023 lb).
Farmland across the whole county, not any one lot. Check your address for the site-by-site record.
Safe to Grow Here?
What the federal record shows across Sweetwater County — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Sweetwater County — 713 documented sites across 8 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 2 Superfund sites (none NPL-listed). Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
There's a meaningful federal record across Sweetwater County — worth a look before you plant food, not a reason to hold back from growing. Proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis of any one yard. A soil test before new food beds is the sensible precaution here, and the map shows exactly which sites sit where, so you can see what's actually near you.
Sources: EPA, USGS — 1.8M documented sites tracked nationwide across 9 federal source types.
What's on the federal record near Sweetwater County
Closest first, across Sweetwater County. Listing isn't leaking, and distance isn't exposure.
- SLT EXPRESS WAY INC DBA SECURED LAND TRANSPORTBrownfields · 2.7 mi
- QUESTAR PIPELINE COMPANY - CKNBrownfields · 2.7 mi
- POINT OF ROCKS COMPRESSOR STATIONBrownfields · 4.1 mi
- 20-101-27caa01Nitrate · 4.7 mi
- 20-101-27bcd01Nitrate · 4.8 mi
- Point of Rocks MercantileUnderground Storage Tanks · 4.8 mi
- 19-103-01 01Nitrate · 5.1 mi
- JIM BRIDGER POWER PLANTBrownfields · 6.7 mi
- JIM BRIDGER PLANTToxics Release Inventory · 7.0 mi
- BLACK BUTTE LEUCITE_HILLS MINEToxics Release Inventory · 7.2 mi
- 21-101-21ada01Nitrate · 8.6 mi
- OCS Rock Springs VORUnderground Storage Tanks · 10.8 mi
6 more sites are on the record inside the same radius. See them on the map
Measured from Sweetwater County'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 Sweetwater County.
Total Sites
713
across Sweetwater County
Risk Level
Elevated
Highest-severity
2 Superfund sites (none NPL-listed)
Sources Checked
across Sweetwater County
Severity Distribution
across Sweetwater County
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around Sweetwater County, Nitrate runs higher than the national average — 208 sites across Sweetwater County. It's not cause for alarm — it's worth knowing, and there's a sensible way to grow around it.
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).
Check your specific parcel in Sweetwater County
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 Sweetwater County average
Your land is one point inside Sweetwater County
Everything above resolves to Sweetwater County as a whole — one PHZM band and one county frost record, read across 6.7M 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 county 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 county average.
Your Lot vs the Sweetwater County Average
Sweetwater County Average
- ●USDA Zones 5b, averaged across Sweetwater County
- ●One soil character for all of Sweetwater County
- ●Frost dates read at Sweetwater County's scale: May 11 to Oct 4
YOUR Parcel
- ✓Your exact zone, not Sweetwater County's 5b
- ✓Your SSURGO soil type & pH
- ✓Your sun exposure, cast in 3D
See MY Growing Report
Read your parcel in Sweetwater County
Pull a site-specific report for your exact address in Sweetwater County, Wyoming — soil, sun, drainage, frost risk, and scored plant recommendations.
Three things about your lot that Sweetwater County averages can't show:
We read public map data around Sweetwater County — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Sweetwater County average
How we know this about Sweetwater County
The datasets: hardiness from the USDA ARS Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023, read at county grain; hard-freeze dates from NOAA 1991–2020 28°F normals at this county’s own record where one resolves, and the labelled statewide window where none does; soils from the USDA NRCS SSURGO survey, area-weighted across the county’s own map units; boundaries and acreage from US Census TIGER/Line 2025; the contamination and pesticide records from the federal sources named in their beats above. Where Sweetwater County carries no record of its own, the figure is inherited and labelled — the resolution ledger below names each.
Common questions about Sweetwater County
When does frost risk typically end in Sweetwater County?
The last hard freeze (28°F) in Sweetwater County typically lands around May 11, 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 Jun 1.
How long is the growing season in Sweetwater County?
Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Sweetwater County sees about 146 frost-free days — roughly May 11 through Oct 4, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer Jun 1 to Sep 20, about 111 days.
Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Sweetwater County?
The federal record around Sweetwater County is a meaningful one — 713 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (297), the nearest Brownfields record about 2.7 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 gardeners stretch the season in Sweetwater County?
With about 146 frost-free days between hard freezes, Sweetwater County rewards the classic extension moves: floating row cover buys roughly two to four extra weeks at each shoulder — on this season that is a working window nearer 174 to 202 days — and cold frames or low tunnels buy more. Starting transplants indoors ahead of the May 11 hard-freeze normal stretches the season without touching the calendar.
Everything above is measured at Sweetwater County's scale — its 5b band and its 146-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Sweetwater County's numbers: we read soil, sun, drainage and frost at your exact address. Try it for 14 days — no card required.
Will It Grow Here?
Zone fit is the first question — each answer below reads Wyoming's frost window, season length, and soil profile against the plant's real requirements.
What this page reads at Sweetwater County’s own scale
9 of the readings below were taken at Sweetwater County's own scale — its own ~146-day span between 28°F freezes, the 3 most extensive soil series mapped here and 713 documented sites inside its boundary; one is borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.
Measured here
- Sweetwater County's own USDA hardiness band, zones 5bUSDA PHZM 2023
- Sweetwater County's own 28°F hard-freeze dates and its ~146-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
- The soil order, drainage, surface pH, and the 3 most extensive named soil series mapped in Sweetwater CountyUSDA NRCS SSURGO
- 713 documented contamination sites inside the county boundary, distance-sorted from its center — the closest Brownfields record about 2.7 miles outFederal environmental registers
- Sweetwater County's boundary and the 6,673,261 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
- Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 5b and a ~146-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
- Sweetwater County sitting wholly inside the Wyoming BasinUS EPA Level III Ecoregions
- Open occurrence records documented in Sweetwater County for a tracked speciesGBIF derived datasets (CC0 / CC BY 4.0)
- Which agricultural compounds go onto Sweetwater County farmland, and roughly how muchUSGS NAWQA EPest county estimates
Inherited from a wider read
- The growing challenges every Wyoming grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Wyoming
What this page can’t tell you
- How the season shifts across Sweetwater County — the ~146 days above is one reading at its centre; the 12 towns below each carry their owntowns in this county →
- The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Sweetwater County's 6,673,261 acreswhy one lot differs from the next →
- Which of those 713 documented sites actually reaches your soil — that needs your address, the wind, and the groundwater directionhow we read the record →
- Where cold air settles, which slopes face the sun, and which way the wind runs on your own ground — none of it survives being averaged over Sweetwater Countyread your own land →