Determining Plant Hardiness in Your Garden: The New USDA Map & Other Resources

Have you recently had a perennial plant overwinter that you didn’t expect would survive because it wasn’t designated to be hardy in your area of the country? If so, you might be wondering why. A clue to the answer lies in the newly updated USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) that was released at the end of 2023. The map’s information has long been relied upon by gardeners, growers, and researchers to help determine which plants will survive, and which won’t, in their growing areas. The PHZM’s updates reflect changes that impact about half of the country, with the overall…

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Category Birds

Plants to Feed the Birds

Have you ever seen a goldfinch balance on the tip of a Liatris flower spike as it sways in the breeze? Or watched chickadees plucking seeds from the cones of your Echinacea blossoms? Birds enliven any garden with their colors,…

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