The New Hampshire Apple Calendar, Stage by Stage
A stage-by-stage look at when New Hampshire apple trees break dormancy, bloom, set fruit and ripen, anchored on Manchester’s NOAA frost dates.
Gardening in New Hampshire
Everything we have worked out for New Hampshire: 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 Manchester, the last spring freeze runs April 16 to April 27 and the first fall freeze runs October 13 to October 26, USDA zones 3b-6a, 2,973 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 New Hampshire: 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.
The Best Apple Varieties for New Hampshire
A look at how Manchester’s frost dates and winter lows narrow down which apple types will survive and fruit reliably in New Hampshire.
Watering a Garden in New Hampshire: How Much, How Often, and the Local Rules
New Hampshire gardens don’t struggle from lack of rain the way a desert climate does, but the heat spikes and soil type on any given property decide…
Canning at Altitude in New Hampshire: What Your Elevation Changes
Manchester, New Hampshire sits at 262 feet above sea level, where water boils somewhere between 208°F and 212°F.
When to Plant Onions in New Hampshire
New Hampshire’s growing season runs on long days, not mild winters, so onions here get started early rather than late.
The Best Onion Varieties for New Hampshire
New Hampshire sits at 42.93 degrees north, and on the longest day of the year the sun gives it 15 hours and 10 minutes of daylight.
The Best Grass Seed for New Hampshire Lawns
New Hampshire’s cool climate favors Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, fine fescue, tall fescue and rough bluegrass, with fall seeding timed to Manchester’s first frost window.
New Hampshire Soil: What You Are Digging Into, and How to Improve It
New Hampshire gardeners dig into ground built on granite bedrock, glacial till, and centuries of conifer litter.
New Hampshire Planting Calendar: When to Sow and Plant, Frost Dates Included
This calendar uses NOAA’s Manchester frost normals and UNH Extension guidance to show when cool-season, warm-season and fall crops go in across New Hampshire.
Flowers That Actually Thrive in New Hampshire, and the Ones That Struggle
New Hampshire’s cold winters and short warm season favor hardy natives and perennials, while many heat-loving or tender flowers need replanting every spring.