How do I select the plants that will be hardy for my area?

A simple way is to buy plants locally. These will be suited for your zone.

To understand more about hardiness zones, the following sources can be helpful.

• USDA Plant Hardiness zone map
  • The USDA Plant Hardiness zone map tells you the zone in which you live. Many plants are labeled by zone.
• Sunset climate zones map
  • The Sunset climate zones map differs from the USDA map because it takes into account rainfall, humidity, summer highs and winter lows, whereas the USDA map only considers winter lows.
• American Horticultural Society's heat zone map
  • The American Horticultural Society's heat zone map includes the number of days a region experiences temperatures over 86 degrees. The zones are numbered 1 through 12, with 12 being the hottest.

Select your plants according to how they can survive in each of these three zones. Many plants include reference to the USDA Plant Hardiness zone map, but some do include reference to the other two zones as well.

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