The Best Apple Varieties for Michigan
How to match an apple variety’s bloom timing and winter hardiness to Michigan’s frost dates, using MSU Extension’s data and NOAA’s climate normals.
Gardening in Michigan
Everything we have worked out for Michigan: 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 Detroit, the last spring freeze runs April 30 in the Detroit area; early to mid May across most of the Lower Peninsula and the first fall freeze runs October 6 to October 21, USDA zones 4a-6b, 3,248 growing degree days in the year.
Garlic does well: 26.1 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in Michigan: 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.
Watering a Garden in Michigan: How Much, How Often, and the Local Rules
Michigan gardens don’t face a true dry season, but that doesn’t mean the sky does the work for you.
Michigan Soil: What You Are Digging Into, and How to Improve It
Dig a shovel into ground almost anywhere in the Lower Peninsula’s pine country and there’s a decent chance you’re standing on a cousin of the Kalkaska…
Michigan Planting Calendar: When to Sow and Plant, Frost Dates Included
Frost dates vary widely across Michigan, so this calendar shows how to time cool-season and warm-season plantings from the Detroit-area last frost to the fall’s first freeze.
Flowers That Actually Thrive in Michigan, and the Ones That Struggle
Michigan’s cold winters and short growing season favor cold-hardy perennials and native wildflowers over tender tropicals, and this guide names what to plant.
Planting Spring Bulbs in Michigan: What Will Come Back, and What Will Not
Yes, but only if the bulb’s cold requirement matches what a Michigan winter actually delivers.
Firewood in Michigan: Which Woods Your Winter Actually Needs
Michigan winters ask a specific question of anyone burning wood: is this fire for survival or for atmosphere?
When to Carve a Pumpkin in Michigan
Around Halloween in Michigan, the first fall frost has often already come and gone in much of the state.
Growing Onions in Michigan: Which Varieties Actually Bulb
At 42.23 degrees north, Michigan’s Detroit-area reference point gets 15 hours and 5 minutes of daylight on the longest day of the year — enough for…
Growing Apples in Michigan: Varieties, Timing and Frost Risk
Michigan’s apple-growing conditions range from USDA zone 4a in the north to 6b near Detroit, with variety choice and spring frost timing deciding the harvest.