Garlic Varieties That Suit Alabama Winters
Alabama’s winters favor softneck garlic over hardneck, and the Huntsville frost window shows the safest planting dates each fall.
Gardening in Alabama
Everything we have worked out for Alabama: what to plant and when, which varieties finish in time, the pests that actually turn up here, and the jobs that pay off month by month. We also cover the rest of the property, from lawns and soil to home care and energy, because a garden rarely stops at the vegetable bed.
The numbers first, because everything else follows from them. Measured at the weather station in Huntsville, the last spring freeze runs March 19 to April 3 and the first fall freeze runs November 2 to November 16, USDA zones 7a-9a, 5,449 growing degree days in the year.
Garlic does well: 13 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in Alabama: the pests that turn up here.
Figures from NOAA's 1991-2020 climate normals. A state is not one climate: elevation, a large lake or the coast can move these dates by two weeks either way, so check your own county with the extension service before you spend money.
Growing Garlic in Alabama: Planting Dates, Varieties and Winter Cold
Alabama’s fall frost timing and winter chill determine which garlic varieties bulb properly, when to plant cloves, and how to protect them through winter.
When to Plant Garlic in Alabama: Counting Back From the First Frost
Alabama gardeners should set garlic cloves mid to late October, a window timed against Huntsville’s NOAA-tracked first fall frost between November 2 and 16.
Tomato Planting Dates in Alabama: Counting Back From Your Frost Window
Huntsville’s NOAA frost window runs March 19 to April 3 in spring and November 2 to 16 in fall, and Alabama tomato growers should count transplant dates from those figures.
Tomato Varieties That Ripen in Time in Alabama
Nine tomato varieties, from 55-day cherry tomatoes to 85-day paste tomatoes, matched against Alabama’s frost window to show which ones finish with room to spare.
Tomato Pests in Alabama: Which Ones Actually Show Up Here
A season-by-season rundown of the tomato pests that actually appear in Alabama gardens, how to identify each one, and what controls them.
Growing Tomatoes in Alabama: Planting Dates, Varieties and Local Pests
Alabama’s frost window, best tomato varieties for humid summers, and the pests and diseases home gardeners run into most, from blossom end rot to hornworms.