What USDA hardiness zone is Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH?

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH spans USDA hardiness zones 5b to 7a. 55% of its ZIP codes are zone 6b, so there is no single zone for the metro.

When is the last spring frost in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH?

The median last spring freeze runs April 4 – May 16 across the 47 NOAA weather stations serving Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, from NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals. Half of years freeze later than the median.

Place guide

Planting zones in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

This metro spans USDA zones 5b to 7a, so there is no single zone for Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH and anyone who gives you one is rounding. 55% of its ZIP codes are zone 6b; the rest are not.

USDA zones 5b–7a 4 zones across 285 ZIP codes

ZIP codes 285 285 have a NOAA station within range

Weather stations 47 NOAA 1991–2020 normals, across 3,486 sq mi

Your ZIP code

Get the exact answer for your address

Everything above describes Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH as a whole. Hardiness zones and freeze dates are published per ZIP code, so yours is exact — enter it and this page will tell you your zone, which NOAA station it comes from and how far away that station is.

The growing season in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH is closing

Nothing in the 32-crop table still has time to mature here. The first fall freeze normally arrives September 30 – November 9 across the 47 NOAA stations serving this metro area .

Your next season already has a date

The first job of it is 🧅 Green Onions, start indoors, around February 7 – March 21 — counted back from a last spring freeze of April 4 – May 16 here.

Every spring date for your ZIP →

These are ranges across the whole metro area. The ZIP lookup above gives the dates from your own nearest station instead.

All 47 stations agreeAt least one station

Every one of the 47 NOAA stations serving this metro area counts May 16 – September 30 as growing season (137 days). Widening to any single station gives April 4 – November 9 (219 days).

That is a 82-day difference inside one metro area — which is why this page gives ranges rather than a single planting date. The ZIP lookup above resolves it to one station.

Which zone you are in depends where you are

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH covers 4 hardiness zones. A guide that gives the metro one zone has picked whichever is largest and rounded everyone else into it — which is fine for the 55% in zone 6b and wrong for the other 45%. Here is the actual split.

Zone	ZIP codes	Share
6b	158	55%
6a	64	22%
7a	59	21%
5b	4	1%

Zones are published per ZIP code, so yours is exact even though the metro's is not. The hardiness tool will tell you which one you are in.

Your freeze dates

Last spring freeze April 4 – May 16

First fall freeze September 30 – November 9

Those are the earliest and latest medians among the 47 stations serving this metro — not an average, and not one station standing in for the rest. Half of years freeze later than a station's own median.

The spread is the point. Even in a metro that is one hardiness zone throughout, its stations disagree about the last spring freeze. Hardiness zone and frost date measure different things — a zone is the average annual coldest night, a freeze date is when the season turns — and a place can be uniform in one and varied in the other. Use the tools below with your own ZIP rather than the ends of this range.

Your growing season

NOAA publishes a growing-season length for each station, and across the 47 stations serving Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH it runs 136–218 days . That figure is published, not computed from the two freeze dates — subtracting one from the other gives the wrong answer wherever a season crosses New Year. Mean summer high (June–August) runs 78–84 °F , below the 90 °F point where cool-season crops reliably bolt. Summer rain over the same months runs 10.4–12.9" across those 47 stations, against the rough inch a week — about 13 inches over the same 92 days — that a vegetable garden is usually reckoned to want. The middle station covers about 87% of it, so expect to make up the rest. The inches are NOAA's published normals; the inch a week is a rule of thumb, and it takes no account of a 80 °F summer afternoon drying the soil faster than a cool one.

When to start seeds in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

Every spring job for 63 crop dates, counted from this metro's own last spring freeze. Each is a range across all 47 stations — the earliest and latest that job falls anywhere in the metro — because no one station speaks for the whole area.

Crop	Job	When	Offset
Green Onions	Start indoors	February 7 – March 21	8 weeks before
Peppers	Start indoors	February 7 – March 21	8 weeks before
Broccoli	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Cabbage	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Collards	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Kale	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Leaf Lettuce	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Peas	Direct sow	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Spinach	Direct sow	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Sweet Potato	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Tomatoes	Start indoors	February 21 – April 4	6 weeks before
Bok Choy	Start indoors	February 28 – April 11	5 weeks before
Kohlrabi	Start indoors	February 28 – April 11	5 weeks before
Swiss Chard	Start indoors	February 28 – April 11	5 weeks before
Arugula	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Baby Salad Greens	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Beets	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Green Onions	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Mustard Greens	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Okra	Start indoors	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Radishes	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Turnips	Direct sow	March 7 – April 18	4 weeks before
Cabbage	Set out	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Carrots	Direct sow	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Collards	Direct sow	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Collards	Set out	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Cucumbers	Start indoors	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Green Onions	Set out	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Kale	Direct sow	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Kale	Set out	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Kohlrabi	Direct sow	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Kohlrabi	Set out	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Leaf Lettuce	Direct sow	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Pumpkins	Start indoors	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Summer Squash	Start indoors	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Winter Squash	Start indoors	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Zucchini	Start indoors	March 14 – April 25	3 weeks before
Bok Choy	Direct sow	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Bok Choy	Set out	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Broccoli	Set out	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Cilantro	Direct sow	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Leaf Lettuce	Set out	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Swiss Chard	Direct sow	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Swiss Chard	Set out	March 21 – May 2	2 weeks before
Dill	Direct sow	March 28 – May 9	1 week before
Bush Beans	Direct sow	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Cucumbers	Set out	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Pumpkins	Direct sow	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Pumpkins	Set out	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Summer Squash	Direct sow	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Summer Squash	Set out	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Sweet Corn	Direct sow	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Tomatoes	Set out	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Winter Squash	Direct sow	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Winter Squash	Set out	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Zucchini	Direct sow	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Zucchini	Set out	April 11 – May 23	1 week after
Cucumbers	Direct sow	April 18 – May 30	2 weeks after
Okra	Direct sow	April 18 – May 30	2 weeks after
Okra	Set out	April 18 – May 30	2 weeks after
Peppers	Set out	April 18 – May 30	2 weeks after
Southern Peas	Direct sow	April 18 – May 30	2 weeks after
Sweet Potato	Set out	April 18 – May 30	2 weeks after

The week offsets are conventional extension guidance and vary by variety; the freeze dates they are counted from are measured. For a single date rather than a range, run when do I start my seeds? with your own ZIP code.

What survives the winter changes across Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

Of 74 perennial fruits, nuts, berries, vegetables and herbs, 58 come through the winter in zone 7a and only 48 in zone 5b. That is a different garden at each end of the same metro.

Zone	ZIPs	Survive	Fail for being too warm
5b	4	48 of 74	0
6a	64	51 of 74	0
6b	158	51 of 74	0
7a	59	58 of 74	1

The last column is the counterintuitive one, and it is why the totals do not simply rise as the winters get milder. Most temperate fruit needs a documented number of hours below about 45 °F to break dormancy and set a crop, so an apple fails in a winter that is too warm; currants and rhubarb cook in the summer heat that comes with it. See the full list with reasons.

Cautious — shortens the seasonMedian across stationsOptimistic

Last spring freeze: Plan to May 29 to be careful. Median April 4 – May 16 across 47 stations; March 25 is the optimistic end.
First fall freeze: Plan to September 18 to be careful. Median September 30 – November 9 across 47 stations; November 22 is the optimistic end.

NOAA publishes these as probabilities, not averages — the middle figure is a median, so half of years fall either side of it. The cautious end is the 10% tail: in roughly nine years in ten the freeze falls on the safe side of it.

The 47 stations behind these numbers

All 47 NOAA stations whose normals this page quotes, spanning about 217 km north to south. Every one is named with its identifier in the station list below — this page does not single one out, because no one station speaks for a whole metro area.

A relative sketch, not a map with a projection: longitude is adjusted for latitude so the shape is not stretched, and there is no basemap. For the one station nearest a specific address, with its real distance, use the ZIP lookup above.

Every figure above comes from these, and each is named so you can check it. Which station serves a given ZIP code, and how far away it is, varies across the metro — the table below gives it per ZIP code rather than this page averaging it.

Station	NOAA ID	Last spring freeze	First fall freeze	Season
Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	USW00014702	April 28	October 10	165 days
Bedford, MA	USC00190535	April 27	October 13	169 days
Beverly Muni AP, MA	USW00054733	April 24	October 17	177 days
Beverly, MA	USC00190593	May 4	October 12	160 days
Blue Hill Coop, MA	USC00190736	April 18	October 26	190 days
Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	USW00014739	April 4	November 9	218 days
Bridgewater, MA	USC00190840	May 1	October 9	161 days
Brockton, MA	USC00190860	April 22	October 19	178 days
Concord Muni AP, NH	USW00014745	May 8	October 3	146 days
Durham 2 N, NH	USW00054794	May 3	October 10	158 days
Durham 2 Ssw, NH	USW00054795	May 7	October 4	150 days
Durham, NH	USC00272174	May 8	October 4	148 days
E Wareham, MA	USC00192451	April 21	October 24	186 days
Epping, NH	USC00272800	May 7	October 4	148 days
Fitchburg Coop, MA	USC00192807	May 1	October 9	162 days
Fitchburg Muni AP, MA	USW00004780	April 29	October 11	164 days
Greenland, NH	USC00273626	May 4	October 8	157 days
Groveland, MA	USC00193276	May 3	October 8	158 days
Haverhill, MA	USC00193505	May 1	October 12	163 days
Hingham, MA	USC00193624	April 25	October 22	177 days
Hudson 1 Sse, NH	USC00274234	May 3	October 8	156 days
Jamaica Plain, MA	USC00193890	April 19	October 23	185 days
Lakeport 2, NH	USC00274480	April 30	October 18	170 days
Lawrence Muni AP, MA	USW00094723	April 21	October 21	182 days
Lawrence, MA	USC00194105	April 13	October 28	198 days
Lowell, MA	USC00194313	April 30	October 10	164 days
Manchester AP, NH	USW00014710	April 21	October 19	180 days
Marblehead, MA	USC00194502	April 25	October 20	176 days
Massabesic Lake, NH	USC00275211	April 30	October 11	164 days
Maynard 2, MA	USC00194580	May 2	October 6	156 days
Middleboro, MA	USC00194711	April 23	October 16	174 days
Middleton, MA	USC00194744	May 3	October 9	157 days
Nashua Cwsu, NH	USC00275703	April 29	October 8	162 days
Natick, MA	USC00195175	April 26	October 12	169 days
New Bedford Coop, MA	USC00195246	April 11	November 5	208 days
Norton W, MA	USC00195984	April 27	October 15	168 days
Norwood Mem AP, MA	USW00054704	April 25	October 9	167 days
Plymouth Muni AP, MA	USW00054769	April 30	October 16	170 days
Plymouth-Kingston, MA	USC00196486	April 15	November 1	198 days
Reading, MA	USC00196783	April 25	October 17	174 days
Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	USW00054791	April 30	October 9	161 days
Rochester, MA	USC00196938	April 23	October 21	180 days
Sanford 2 Nnw, ME	USC00177479	May 16	September 30	136 days
W Hampstead, NH	USC00279278	April 30	October 11	162 days
Walpole 2, MA	USC00198757	April 27	October 14	169 days
West Medway, MA	USC00199316	April 30	October 9	162 days
Woonsocket, RI	USC00379423	April 22	October 19	179 days

These are medians, not averages — NOAA publishes freeze dates as a probability distribution, and half of years freeze later than the date shown.

Every ZIP code in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

Zones are published per ZIP code, not per metro area, so this is the exact answer rather than the metro area's average. The station column is the nearest one to that ZIP code's centroid and how far away it is — the same figure the tools use, shown here so you can see which ZIP codes are well covered and which are reaching.

ZIP code	USDA zone	Nearest NOAA station	Distance
01431	6a	Fitchburg Coop, MA	7.1 km
01432	6a	Fitchburg Muni AP, MA	14.9 km
01450	6a	Nashua Cwsu, NH	15.3 km
01460	6a	Maynard 2, MA	12.5 km
01463	6a	Nashua Cwsu, NH	12.3 km
01464	6a	Fitchburg Muni AP, MA	9.7 km
01469	6a	Fitchburg Coop, MA	10.2 km
01474	6a	Fitchburg Coop, MA	7.6 km
01701	6b	Natick, MA	9.1 km
01702	6b	Natick, MA	7.6 km
01719	6a	Maynard 2, MA	9.0 km
01720	6b	Maynard 2, MA	6.1 km
01721	6b	Natick, MA	11.0 km
01730	6b	Bedford, MA	1.8 km
01731	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	0.7 km
01741	6b	Bedford, MA	8.7 km
01742	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	6.2 km
01746	6b	West Medway, MA	7.2 km
01748	6b	West Medway, MA	13.4 km
01749	6b	Maynard 2, MA	9.6 km
01752	6b	Maynard 2, MA	12.3 km
01754	6b	Maynard 2, MA	1.2 km
01760	6b	Natick, MA	0.5 km
01770	6b	Natick, MA	6.1 km
01773	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	5.3 km
01775	6b	Maynard 2, MA	5.7 km
01776	6b	Maynard 2, MA	5.4 km
01778	6b	Natick, MA	8.3 km
01801	6b	Reading, MA	4.6 km
01803	6b	Reading, MA	6.7 km
01810	6b	Lawrence, MA	5.7 km
01821	6b	Bedford, MA	7.8 km
01824	6b	Lowell, MA	5.6 km
01826	6a	Lowell, MA	6.7 km
01827	6a	Nashua Cwsu, NH	6.7 km
01830	6a	Haverhill, MA	4.1 km
01832	6a	Haverhill, MA	6.9 km
01833	6b	Groveland, MA	5.3 km
01834	6a	Groveland, MA	2.3 km
01835	6b	Haverhill, MA	2.9 km
01840	6b	Lawrence, MA	0.9 km
01841	6b	Lawrence Muni AP, MA	2.0 km
01843	6b	Lawrence, MA	1.1 km
01844	6b	Lawrence, MA	4.9 km
01845	6b	Lawrence Muni AP, MA	5.5 km
01850	6b	Lowell, MA	5.2 km
01851	6b	Lowell, MA	2.6 km
01852	6b	Lowell, MA	5.6 km
01854	6b	Lowell, MA	1.6 km
01860	6a	Haverhill, MA	9.6 km
01862	6b	Lowell, MA	8.9 km
01863	6b	Lowell, MA	3.0 km
01864	6b	Middleton, MA	5.6 km
01867	6b	Reading, MA	2.0 km
01876	6b	Lawrence, MA	10.9 km
01879	6a	Lowell, MA	6.1 km
01880	6b	Reading, MA	5.4 km
01886	6a	Lowell, MA	8.8 km
01887	6b	Reading, MA	5.6 km
01890	6b	Reading, MA	8.1 km
01901	7a	Marblehead, MA	8.1 km
01902	7a	Marblehead, MA	7.1 km
01904	6b	Marblehead, MA	8.8 km
01905	7a	Marblehead, MA	9.8 km
01906	6b	Reading, MA	11.0 km
01907	7a	Marblehead, MA	4.6 km
01908	7a	Marblehead, MA	9.5 km
01913	6a	Haverhill, MA	13.3 km
01915	6b	Beverly, MA	3.2 km
01921	6b	Groveland, MA	7.2 km
01922	6b	Groveland, MA	10.5 km
01923	6b	Beverly Muni AP, MA	2.9 km
01929	6b	Beverly, MA	7.9 km
01930	7a	Beverly, MA	13.5 km
01937	6b	Middleton, MA	3.0 km
01938	6b	Beverly, MA	10.9 km
01940	6b	Middleton, MA	6.8 km
01944	7a	Beverly, MA	5.9 km
01945	7a	Marblehead, MA	1.1 km
01949	6b	Middleton, MA	2.1 km
01950	6b	Groveland, MA	14.4 km
01951	6b	Groveland, MA	16.0 km
01952	6b	Greenland, NH	19.6 km
01960	6b	Beverly Muni AP, MA	7.0 km
01965	6b	Beverly, MA	2.9 km
01966	7a	Beverly, MA	18.7 km
01969	6b	Groveland, MA	13.0 km
01970	7a	Marblehead, MA	3.2 km
01982	6b	Beverly, MA	4.5 km
01983	6b	Beverly Muni AP, MA	6.7 km
01984	6b	Beverly Muni AP, MA	3.3 km
01985	6b	Groveland, MA	8.7 km
02019	6b	West Medway, MA	7.2 km
02021	6b	Blue Hill Coop, MA	4.2 km
02025	7a	Hingham, MA	8.2 km
02026	6b	Norwood Mem AP, MA	6.3 km
02030	6b	Natick, MA	6.9 km
02032	6b	Walpole 2, MA	2.5 km
02035	6b	Norton W, MA	10.0 km
02038	6b	West Medway, MA	5.7 km
02043	7a	Hingham, MA	2.8 km
02045	7a	Hingham, MA	7.1 km
02047	7a	Plymouth-Kingston, MA	18.2 km
02050	7a	Plymouth-Kingston, MA	14.9 km
02052	6b	Walpole 2, MA	5.6 km
02053	6b	West Medway, MA	2.6 km
02054	6b	West Medway, MA	7.2 km
02056	6b	Walpole 2, MA	8.5 km
02061	7a	Hingham, MA	10.4 km
02062	6b	Norwood Mem AP, MA	1.6 km
02066	7a	Hingham, MA	13.0 km
02067	6b	Walpole 2, MA	7.9 km
02071	6b	Walpole 2, MA	6.3 km
02072	6b	Norwood Mem AP, MA	9.8 km
02081	6b	Walpole 2, MA	1.8 km
02090	6b	Norwood Mem AP, MA	4.8 km
02093	6b	West Medway, MA	11.0 km
02108	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.6 km
02109	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	3.3 km
02110	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	3.4 km
02111	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.2 km
02113	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	3.7 km
02114	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.6 km
02115	7a	Jamaica Plain, MA	4.7 km
02116	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	5.5 km
02118	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	5.5 km
02119	7a	Jamaica Plain, MA	4.0 km
02120	7a	Jamaica Plain, MA	3.9 km
02121	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	3.1 km
02122	7a	Jamaica Plain, MA	6.0 km
02124	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	4.5 km
02125	7a	Jamaica Plain, MA	5.8 km
02126	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	4.0 km
02127	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	3.6 km
02128	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	0.3 km
02129	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.7 km
02130	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	1.0 km
02131	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	2.3 km
02132	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	4.0 km
02133	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.4 km
02134	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	6.2 km
02135	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	5.7 km
02136	6b	Blue Hill Coop, MA	4.9 km
02138	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	8.6 km
02139	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	6.8 km
02140	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	9.9 km
02141	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	6.0 km
02142	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	5.8 km
02143	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	7.4 km
02144	6b	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	10.2 km
02145	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	7.4 km
02148	6b	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	8.6 km
02149	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	6.2 km
02150	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.4 km
02151	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	6.5 km
02152	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	3.3 km
02155	6b	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	10.6 km
02163	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	7.1 km
02169	6b	Hingham, MA	8.6 km
02170	7a	Hingham, MA	9.6 km
02171	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	7.8 km
02176	6b	Reading, MA	9.3 km
02180	6b	Reading, MA	6.0 km
02184	6b	Hingham, MA	7.7 km
02186	6b	Blue Hill Coop, MA	4.2 km
02188	6b	Hingham, MA	4.5 km
02189	7a	Hingham, MA	2.2 km
02190	6b	Hingham, MA	7.5 km
02191	7a	Hingham, MA	3.5 km
02203	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	4.0 km
02205	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	3.9 km
02210	7a	Boston Logan INTL AP, MA	2.7 km
02215	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	5.2 km
02301	6b	Brockton, MA	4.4 km
02302	6b	Brockton, MA	4.7 km
02322	6b	Blue Hill Coop, MA	10.1 km
02324	6b	Bridgewater, MA	2.7 km
02325	6b	Bridgewater, MA	4.0 km
02330	6b	Plymouth Muni AP, MA	4.1 km
02332	7a	Plymouth-Kingston, MA	7.0 km
02333	6b	Brockton, MA	5.6 km
02338	6b	Bridgewater, MA	9.4 km
02339	6b	Hingham, MA	12.5 km
02341	6b	Brockton, MA	11.6 km
02343	6b	Brockton, MA	10.4 km
02346	6b	Middleboro, MA	3.3 km
02347	6b	Rochester, MA	6.4 km
02350	6b	Bridgewater, MA	11.9 km
02351	6b	Brockton, MA	8.7 km
02359	6b	Plymouth-Kingston, MA	13.2 km
02360	7a	Plymouth Muni AP, MA	8.7 km
02364	7a	Plymouth-Kingston, MA	3.8 km
02366	6b	Plymouth Muni AP, MA	8.8 km
02367	6b	Plymouth Muni AP, MA	8.2 km
02368	6b	Blue Hill Coop, MA	6.2 km
02370	6b	Hingham, MA	10.9 km
02379	6b	Brockton, MA	3.3 km
02382	6b	Brockton, MA	6.7 km
02420	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	6.0 km
02421	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	5.4 km
02445	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	2.6 km
02446	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	4.5 km
02451	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	8.2 km
02452	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	10.0 km
02453	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	11.9 km
02457	6b	Natick, MA	6.1 km
02458	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	7.7 km
02459	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	5.7 km
02460	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	8.8 km
02461	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	7.0 km
02462	6b	Natick, MA	9.1 km
02464	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	7.9 km
02465	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	9.9 km
02466	6b	Natick, MA	10.6 km
02467	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	2.7 km
02468	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	9.3 km
02472	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	8.6 km
02474	6b	Reading, MA	11.7 km
02476	6b	Bedford Hanscom FLD, MA	11.2 km
02478	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	11.2 km
02481	6b	Natick, MA	6.3 km
02482	6b	Natick, MA	4.1 km
02492	6b	Natick, MA	8.3 km
02493	6b	Natick, MA	9.3 km
02494	6b	Jamaica Plain, MA	8.8 km
02538	7a	E Wareham, MA	2.6 km
02558	7a	E Wareham, MA	2.6 km
02571	7a	E Wareham, MA	2.9 km
02576	7a	E Wareham, MA	7.8 km
02738	7a	E Wareham, MA	9.4 km
02739	7a	New Bedford Coop, MA	10.8 km
02762	6b	Woonsocket, RI	13.2 km
02770	7a	Rochester, MA	7.0 km
03032	6a	Massabesic Lake, NH	2.4 km
03034	6a	Massabesic Lake, NH	8.7 km
03036	6a	W Hampstead, NH	9.3 km
03037	6a	Epping, NH	18.2 km
03038	6a	W Hampstead, NH	6.4 km
03042	6a	Epping, NH	2.3 km
03044	6a	Epping, NH	4.4 km
03053	6a	Manchester AP, NH	8.3 km
03077	6a	Epping, NH	9.7 km
03079	6a	Lawrence, MA	10.9 km
03087	6a	Hudson 1 Sse, NH	9.7 km
03261	6a	Concord Muni AP, NH	22.6 km
03290	6a	Epping, NH	11.7 km
03291	6a	Durham, NH	16.1 km
03801	6a	Greenland, NH	6.2 km
03811	6a	W Hampstead, NH	8.5 km
03819	6a	W Hampstead, NH	6.8 km
03820	6a	Durham 2 N, NH	3.9 km
03823	6a	Durham 2 N, NH	1.2 km
03824	6a	Durham 2 Ssw, NH	2.5 km
03825	6a	Durham 2 N, NH	10.2 km
03826	6a	W Hampstead, NH	6.4 km
03827	6a	Epping, NH	15.8 km
03833	6a	Epping, NH	10.2 km
03835	6a	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	15.0 km
03839	6a	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	5.2 km
03840	6a	Greenland, NH	2.6 km
03841	6a	W Hampstead, NH	4.1 km
03842	6a	Greenland, NH	9.1 km
03844	6b	Greenland, NH	11.8 km
03848	6a	W Hampstead, NH	10.5 km
03851	5b	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	19.6 km
03852	5b	Sanford 2 Nnw, ME	17.1 km
03854	6a	Greenland, NH	9.9 km
03855	5b	Lakeport 2, NH	26.9 km
03856	6a	Durham 2 Ssw, NH	8.0 km
03857	6a	Durham 2 Ssw, NH	4.3 km
03858	6a	Haverhill, MA	12.4 km
03861	6a	Durham 2 Ssw, NH	4.9 km
03862	6a	Greenland, NH	4.6 km
03865	6a	Haverhill, MA	10.0 km
03867	6a	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	6.2 km
03868	6a	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	5.3 km
03869	6a	Durham 2 N, NH	8.7 km
03870	6a	Greenland, NH	5.3 km
03871	6a	Greenland, NH	6.0 km
03873	6a	W Hampstead, NH	3.0 km
03874	6b	Greenland, NH	15.6 km
03878	6a	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	3.9 km
03884	6a	Rochester Skyhaven AP, NH	20.1 km
03885	6a	Greenland, NH	6.3 km
03887	5b	Sanford 2 Nnw, ME	23.6 km

ZIP-code positions are area centroids, so a large rural ZIP code's listed distance is measured from the middle of its area rather than from any particular address in it.

Your own ZIP

Work out your own dates

Each of these takes a ZIP code and answers for that ZIP alone, citing the station it used and how far away it is. There is a ZIP box in the header of every page.

What survives my winter?
Runs on the hardiness zone, so it answers for all of Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH at once — zone across 74 perennial fruits, berries, vegetables and herbs.
When do I start my seeds?
Dates every spring job from your own last freeze — sow indoors, set out, direct sow.
When do I sow the next round?
How often each crop is worth re-sowing, and when the next sowing is due.
What can I still plant?
Counts the growing days left before your first fall freeze, crop by crop.

Other places to compare

These metros span exactly the same zones — 5b–7a — so the same plants are in and out of range across them. The freeze dates and the spring calendar are their own.

Gardening in Massachusetts — zones 5b– 7b covers the whole state: how its 536 ZIP codes divide between 5 hardiness zones, and the freeze dates across every NOAA station in it.

Other metro areas in MA:

Worcester, MA Zones 5b–6b
Barnstable Town, MA Zones 7a–7b
Springfield, MA Zones 6a–6b
Pittsfield, MA Zones 5b–6a
Amherst Town-Northampton, MA Zones 5b–6a

All 388 metro areas, by state

Gear

If you want to act on this

Each link opens an Amazon search rather than a product we picked. We have not tested these and do not rank them — the search is the honest version, and you choose.

Trunk wrapZone 5b is cold enough that winter sun on a young trunk does more damage than the cold does.
Row cover and frost clothThe season here closes at the first fall freeze dated above — a cover buys back some of those days at the end.
MulchFor the perennials nearest their cold limit in zone 5b, where an insulated crown is what decides whether they come back.

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. That costs you nothing extra, and it buys no influence over anything on this site: the dates come from NOAA normals and the zones from the USDA, and no product affects either.

Sources

Where these numbers come from

The hardiness zone is the USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, published per ZIP code by PRISM at Oregon State. The freeze dates are NOAA's 1991–2020 Climate Normals, read from every station whose normals cover a ZIP code in this metro. Nothing here is estimated, and no station stands in for another.

This page names no single station on purpose. Picking one to represent a metro sounds reasonable and is not: the station serving the most ZIP codes is an artifact of where ZIP centroids happen to fall, and it selects a lock on the Monongahela for Pittsburgh and a far southern suburb for Chicago. A range across every station is true; a single cited date for a whole metro is not.

All metro areas