What Grows in Hudson, Wyoming

USDA Zones 5a · 273 acres

Hudson, Wyoming, sits in USDA hardiness zone 5a — room for a real mix of vegetables, fruit, and perennials matched to the local frost calendar.

Growers here do well with cabbage, cranberry, lavender, and collard greens — with the usual caveat that any single yard's soil, sun, and drainage cast the deciding vote.

Score your parcel · free

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

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Hudson — the short answer

Hudson, Wyoming: USDA zone 5a, about 151 days between hard freezes, across 273 acres of town.

USDA zone
5a
USDA PHZM 2023
Last hard freeze (28°F)
May 5
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
First hard freeze (28°F)
Oct 3
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Days between freezes
~151
NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, 28°F — this town
Town area
273 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

5a5a
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Zone 5a is Hudson's average, not your lot's — a low corner or a tree line moves it. Against Hudson's 151-day season, see what your own ground reads.

Soil varies lot by lot — soil types explained.

What this means for growing in Hudson

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

Season length

Measured

Hudson runs about 151 days between hard freezes — a moderate growing season.

There is room for the full run of cool-season crops plus a warm-season main crop, but the calendar is tight enough that a late spring or early fall frost still decides how much finishes.

Time warm-season transplants to your last hard freeze, and a few weeks of season extension turns a near-miss harvest into a sure one.

NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals

Winter hardiness

Measured

Hudson sits in USDA hardiness zone 5a.

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 Hudson is in

Hudson sits in the Wyoming Basin — EPA Level III, inside the wider North American Deserts. That is read at Hudson's own centroid rather than borrowed from Fremont County.

What that means for soil

What Grows in Hudson

Every plant below cleared Hudson's own zone 5a and its 151-day season. Each card opens that plant's Wyoming profile. How we score.

cabbage, photograph
Growing cabbage in WyomingZones 2–11Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
cranberry, photograph
Wyoming cranberry guideZones 2–7Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
lavender, photograph
Lavender in WyomingZones 5–8Hudson's 5a is its exact cold limit.
collard greens, photograph
Collard greens: Wyoming growing notesZones 2–11Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
hazelnut, photograph
Growing hazelnut in WyomingZones 4–9Hudson's 5a — 1 zone of cold margin.
French tarragon, photograph
Wyoming french tarragon guideZones 3–7Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
garlic, photograph
Garlic in WyomingZones 2–10Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
blackberry, photograph
Blackberry: Wyoming growing notesZones 5–8Hudson's 5a is its exact cold limit.
St. Johns wort, photograph
Growing st. johns wort in WyomingZones 3–8Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
kale, photograph
Wyoming kale guideZones 2–11Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
pawpaw, photograph
Pawpaw in WyomingZones 5–9Hudson's 5a is its exact cold limit.
lentil, photograph
Lentil: Wyoming growing notesZones 2–11Hudson's 151 days clear the ~70 it needs.
okra, photograph
Growing okra in WyomingZones 2–12Hudson's 151 days clear the ~50 it needs.
potato, photograph
Wyoming potato guideZones 2–11Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
pumpkin, photograph
Pumpkin in WyomingZones 3–11Hudson's 151 days clear the ~40 it needs.
hosta, photograph
Hosta: Wyoming growing notesZones 3–8Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
sunflower, photograph
Growing sunflower in WyomingZones 2–11Hudson's 151 days clear the ~70 it needs.
azalea, photograph
Wyoming azalea guideZones 4–8Hudson's 5a — 1 zone of cold margin.
hops, photograph
Hops in WyomingZones 3–8Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
iris, photograph
Iris: Wyoming growing notesZones 3–10Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
French marigold, photograph
Growing french marigold in WyomingHudson's 151 days clear the ~50 it needs.
lilac, photograph
Wyoming lilac guideZones 4–10Hudson's 5a — 1 zone of cold margin.
American bittersweet, photograph
American bittersweet in WyomingZones 3–8Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
Canada anemone, photograph
Canada anemone: Wyoming growing notesZones 3–8Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
American elm, photograph
Growing american elm in WyomingZones 3–9Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.
annual ryegrass, photograph
Wyoming annual ryegrass guideZones 3–10Hudson's 151 days clear the ~90 it needs.
Kentucky bluegrass, botanical illustration
Kentucky bluegrass in WyomingZones 2–7Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
blue spruce, photograph
Blue spruce: Wyoming growing notesZones 2–8Hudson's 5a — 3 zones of cold margin.
balansa clover, photograph
Growing balansa clover in WyomingZones 3–9Hudson's 151 days clear the ~90 it needs.
Canada wild rye, photograph
Wyoming canada wild rye guideZones 3–8Hudson's 5a — 2 zones of cold margin.

Is it too late to plant in Hudson?

Too late for some crops, right on time for others — a growing season is a sequence, not a deadline. Cool-season crops can go in from around Apr 7; tender transplants wait until two to three weeks after the last 28°F hard freeze, which lands near May 5 (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals); and from midsummer, planting counts back from the first fall freeze around Oct 3 — long-season crops need about 90 days of runway, quick greens only 30. The tail of the season still works: sixty-day crops into late summer, quick greens after, garlic last of all.

What's on the federal record near Hudson

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

  1. Lorae S. MorrisUnderground Storage Tanks · 550 ft
  2. Fremont County School District #1Underground Storage Tanks · 750 ft
  3. Svilar, Inc.Underground Storage Tanks · 1100 ft
  4. Don W TreeseUnderground Storage Tanks · 1300 ft
  5. Hudson Gas, Grill and GoodsUnderground Storage Tanks · 1900 ft
  6. 33-098-06ccd01Nitrate · 3.9 mi
  7. 1S-03E-18dda01Nitrate · 4.9 mi
  8. WEBER FEEDLOTCAFO · 5.2 mi
  9. 1S-03E-17bcb01Nitrate · 5.4 mi
  10. 1S-03E-07dcd01Nitrate · 5.6 mi
  11. SHOSHONE AND ARAPAHOE TRIBAL TRANSIT CENTERBrownfields · 5.9 mi
  12. 1S-03E-23cba01Nitrate · 6.0 mi

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

Measured from Hudson'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 Hudson.

Total Sites

158

within ~10 miles of Hudson

Risk Level

Elevated

Highest-severity

1 Superfund site (none NPL-listed)

Severity Distribution

within ~10 miles of Hudson

High0Moderate72Low86

Highest-Severity Sites

1N-03E-27bbb02
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
1N-03E-27bbb02
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
1S-01E-15ccc01
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
1S-01E-15ccc01
Nitrate Monitoring · Well
1S-01E-22bba01
Nitrate Monitoring · Well

A note from Gnorman

What an experienced grower watches for around here

In and around Hudson, Nitrate runs higher than the national average — 62 sites within ~10 miles of Hudson. 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).

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Hudson

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 Hudson average

Your land is one point inside Hudson

Everything above resolves to Hudson as a whole — one PHZM band and one 28°F frost record, read across 273 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 Hudson Average

Hudson Average

  • USDA Zones 5a, averaged across Hudson
  • One soil character for all of Hudson
  • Frost dates read at Hudson's scale: May 5 to Oct 3

YOUR Parcel

  • Your exact zone, not Hudson's 5a
  • Your SSURGO soil type & pH
  • Your sun exposure, cast in 3D

See MY Growing Report

Free Report

Read your specific parcel in Hudson

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

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

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Hudson averages 151Your sun & shade

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

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

How we know this about Hudson

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 Hudson’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 Hudson

When does frost risk typically end in Hudson?

The last hard freeze (28°F) in Hudson typically lands around May 5, 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 May 26.

When is the first frost in Hudson?

The first hard freeze (28°F) in Hudson typically arrives around Oct 3, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals — the point tender summer crops finish. Lighter frosts run ahead of it, near Sep 19, so the watching starts about Sep 3 — about 151 days after the spring freeze cleared.

How long is the growing season in Hudson?

Measured between 28°F hard freezes, Hudson sees about 151 frost-free days — roughly May 5 through Oct 3, per NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals. Tender crops work a shorter one: nearer May 26 to Sep 19, about 116 days.

Is the soil safe to grow vegetables in Hudson?

The federal record around Hudson is a meaningful one — 158 documented sites, mostly Underground Storage Tanks entries (73), the nearest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.1 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 Hudson?

From about Sep 3 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 3 (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 3. Hardy greens and roots shrug off light frost and sweeten after it — leave them in.

Everything above is measured at Hudson's scale — its 5a band and its 151-day season. Your yard writes its own version of Hudson'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 Hudson’s own scale

6 of the readings below were taken at Hudson's own scale — its own ~151-day season between 28°F freezes, the 273 acres it covers and 158 documented sites around it; 4 are borrowed from a wider read, named and linked below.

Measured here

  • Hudson's own USDA hardiness band, zones 5aUSDA PHZM 2023
  • Hudson's own 28°F hard-freeze dates, about May 5 and Oct 3 and the ~151-day span between themNOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals
  • 158 documented contamination sites on the federal record near Hudson, the closest Underground Storage Tanks record about 0.1 miles out from the town centreFederal environmental registers
  • Hudson's boundary and the 273 acres inside itUS Census TIGER/Line 2025
  • Which of 1,086 plants clear zones 5a and a ~151-day seasonGrowable Ground crop-matching engine
  • The ecoregion at Hudson's own centroid, the Wyoming BasinUS EPA Level III Ecoregions

Inherited from a wider read

  • Soil character — no town-scale survey exists, so Hudson's 273 acres read through its county's SSURGO summaryfrom Fremont County
  • Growing-degree days and winter chill — measured county-wide only, so the county page carries themfrom Fremont County
  • The growing challenges every Wyoming grower plans around — written at state scale, so they stay on the state guidefrom Wyoming
  • Butterfly and beetle records, and the farmland pesticide estimate — all published county-widefrom Fremont County

What this page can’t tell you

  • The soil pH, drainage, sun hours, and frost pockets on any one lot among Hudson's 273 acreswhy one lot differs from the next
  • Which side of Hudson you're on — a low spot frosts first and a south wall warms early, and one normal is being asked to speak for all 273 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 Hudson-wide figureread your own land
The next step finer is your own address