Growing Green: Get in the Zone (Tip #1)

Welcome to the first post in the series of my top gardening tips, where I'll list the things that made the biggest difference in my gardening results.

Already I can tell that the hardest part of making these posts is going to be simply being okay with leaving out a lot of information. Because here's how it's going so far: I begin writing about how to plant seeds, then realize that I should first talk about planning your garden so you know how many seeds to plant. Then I think about how, before thinking of how many seeds to plant, you need first to decide which kind to buy. And to know which to buy, you need to know which grow well in your zone. But how can you know that if you don't know your zone? See what I mean? I'm tempted to spiderweb all over the gardening map, which could get tricky.

But setting tricks to the side, I'll attempt to focus this series on only the major factors that affect how well a garden grows. I'll try to keep it simple but let's be honest, I'm not known for brevity. Why use five words that could be misunderstood when you can write a paragraph that explains and explains and explains? Okay, let's go. The first tip isn't glamorous but still important.

Tip #1: Know Your Zone

Understanding my growing zone changed the way I think about gardening and helped me to feel solid in knowing what to grow and when to grow it. With just two simple pieces of information, you can hone in on what grows well in your area and when your seeds should go into the soil, whether you're direct sowing them into the garden or starting them indoors and transplanting them later.

First, let's talk about the US Hardiness Zone map. 

Put out by the Department of Agriculture, this map tells how cold it's likely to get in a region, which is important to know if you'd like to plant fruit trees, perennial herbs, or perennial flowers. 

Note: "Perennial" means something that comes back year after year, as opposed to "annual," which means something that grows for one season and then dies. (We'll talk more about this later because a plant can be both annual and perennial. See the spiderweb temptation here? I must resist and stay on task!)

In the Twin Falls area, our growing zone is 6b. That means that our average lowest winter temperature is somewhere between 0 and -5 degrees Fahrenheit. It can get colder OR we could have a mild winter that doesn't reach temperatures that cold, but that's our average. 

So what do we do with that information? We don't buy perennial plants that will die in temperatures that cold! 

We would be foolish to spend money on citrus or avocado trees and plant them outdoors in Twin Falls. While we might love the idea of fresh squeezed lemonade from home grown lemons, we're not going to get it unless we cart our lemon trees indoors to snuggle with us during the long winter. (Now is probably a good time to tell you that I have two Meyer lemon trees currently sitting in my dining room and acting all cranky because they've been cooped up since last October. But what can I say? I really like the idea of fresh squeezed lemonade from home grown lemons!)

Considering our 6b growing zone, I searched for a fig tree that could withstand our winters. I found the Desert King, cold hardy to 0 degrees (colder if well-mulched). That's an example of how I used my hardiness zone to dictate what kind of tree I bought.

So if you'd like to plant trees, flowers, or herbs, check the cold hardiness of each variety you are considering. If it won't do well in our winter, you can still buy it but you'll need to pot it up and bring it inside for the winter. But since most people don't want to dig up their garden and be roomies with it for six months out of the year, knowing your growing zone is helpful when shopping for perennials.

Note: I recommend doing your own research. I've seen certain varieties of fruit trees offered locally and advertised as tolerant of our winter weather. But then when several customers complained that their trees died over the winter, the seller told them it was because they didn't properly winterize the trees and refused to give a refund. The customers had no idea they needed to winterize the trees--they were told the trees would be fine in our winter weather! Trees are a big investment. My tip is to double check before purchasing.

Next, let's talk about the last spring frost. 

Each year there are projections of spring's last frost (any temp lower than 32 degrees) for every US city. Knowing this date is important because most garden veggies struggle in frosty temps and can be damaged or die. 

In the Twin Falls area, our last frost comes sometime around May 11th. To be safe, most gardeners wait until well after May 11th to plant their seeds or seedlings outdoors. In fact, I've heard a few locals advise waiting until after Memorial Day, which is May 27th this year.

Now remember, this is just an estimate. If you tend to be a "better safe than sorry" type of person, you're going to want to wait to plant. But if you're a risk-taking rebel, you might choose to watch the weather reports like a stock trader watches the market. If it's been a warmer winter and spring seems to have sprung, such a rebel might choose to transplant her seedlings before May 11th.

Note: If you're just starting out, I would play it safe. Who wants to lose seedlings in a freak cold snap, or have their Desert King fig tree nearly scalped by a half-hour hailstorm that nobody saw coming? I have had both things happen but persist in living the rebel life. My gut tends to be right about 95% of the time and I think that keeps me trying to outsmart the system. But it's also good to play by the rules and minimize surprises. Do whatever feels right to you.

Last, a note about our growing season and day length.

We usually get our first fall frost sometime from the last week of September to the first week of October. That doesn't mean everything dies that very day, though. It means that you will notice that production starts winding down as the temps start cooling down. Things will die when a hard freeze comes, but most robust plants can handle a quick dip below freezing. (I'll talk about tips for hurrying harvests when winter is coming in another post.) 

On average the Twin Falls area has about 135 days of growing. Anything over 100 days is considered a long growing season, which means we're in a great spot to grow a lot of things! Coming from the Oregon coast, this extended warm gardening weather feels like an indulgence.

Okay, now you know where you are and what that means for your garden, but let's recap: 

Last frost around May 11th. Maybe wait until the 27th. First fall frost around October 1st. Winter gets down to -5F, so don't buy stuff that can't handle it.

I hope this was helpful to someone!

Next we'll get down in the dirt. I'll talk about soil. Soil for seed starting, soil for raised beds, and how to help your soil to healthfulness.