How Much Insulation Does a Home in Maryland Need?
Maryland doesn’t have one insulation answer. It sits across two IECC climate zones, 4A and 5A, and the levels ENERGY STAR recommends shift depending on…
Gardening in Maryland
Everything we have worked out for Maryland: 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 Baltimore, the last spring freeze runs April 3 to April 16 and the first fall freeze runs October 26 to November 5, USDA zones 5b-8a, 3,994 growing degree days in the year.
Garlic does well: 21.8 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in Maryland: 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.
When to Sow Beets in Maryland
Sow beets in Maryland two to three weeks before the last spring frost, which the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s climate normals place…
When Can You Turn the Heat Off in Maryland?
Maryland doesn’t get a true dead zone in its degree-day calendar. NOAA’s 1991-2020 climate normals put September, the state’s quietest month, at about…
When to Sow Parsnips in Maryland
Sow parsnip seed directly in the garden bed, never as transplants, from mid-March into early April in most of Maryland, timing the sowing 2 to 3 weeks…
Will Sweet Corn Ripen in Maryland?
Yes, sweet corn ripens reliably across most of Maryland, from the Eastern Shore through the Piedmont and into Southern Maryland, as long as the soil has…
When to Sow Sweet Corn in Maryland
Sweet corn seed needs soil above 60 F to germinate reliably, and that threshold shows up in Maryland well after the last frost has passed, not alongside…
When to Sow Autumn Spinach in Maryland
In Maryland, spring spinach goes into the ground two to three weeks before the last frost, which lands between April 3 and April 16 depending on where…
Will Spinach Bolt Early in Maryland?
Yes, spinach will bolt early almost anywhere in Maryland, and it has little to do with how mild or muggy the summer feels.
Will Maryland Soil Hold an Asparagus Bed for Fifteen Years?
Yes, provided the ground drains water away instead of holding onto it. A fifteen-year asparagus bed doesn’t ask for rich soil or a particular pH: it asks…
When to Plant Asparagus Crowns in Maryland
In most of Maryland, the answer is around early spring, timed to the region’s last frost, which the National Centers for Environmental Information places…