New hardiness maps suggest fresh opportunities for planting

New hardiness maps suggest fresh opportunities for planting
Written by Ed Peaco for the News-Leader February 12, 2012

A feature article on the new USDA plant hardiness map. The article featured three Friends of the Garden members in interviews for the article Dow Whiting, Patrick Byers, and Lee Coates. Take a few minutes and read the complete article.  As a gardener you will appreciate this news. George

Ozarks gardeners who love to push the envelope on planting now have confirmation that their methods are no longer quite as risky as they seemed.

It’s no secret that the Ozarks has been getting warmer over the years; longtime residents have witnessed the change. Now the U.S. Department of Agriculture has acknowledged the trend with its revision of plant hardiness zone maps, released late last month. It’s the first upgrade since 1990.

Dow Whiting, owner of Garden Adventures Nursery in Nixa, said the new zones provide confirmation when he suggests customers try plants, such as camellia, that would not have been considered hardy enough for the Ozarks in past years.

“Now we have documentation that yes, you can grow those here,” said Whiting, who grew up in the Ozarks. He has worked in the nursery industry for 20 years and has been developing new cultivars suited to the Ozarks for more than a decade.

While hardiness is not the only criterion for making planting decisions, the data shown on the new maps present attractive opportunities for growers, Ozarks horticulturalists said.

To Read the complete informative News-Leader article, click here.

USDA website provides interactive and downloadable hardiness zone maps, as well zones by ZIP code and research information at http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/#