What Do Homes in Tennessee Cool With?
Tennessee homes cool almost entirely with air conditioning: 93% of homes run some form of AC equipment, 86% of them on a central system, and 16% on an…
Gardening in Tennessee
Everything we have worked out for Tennessee: 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 Nashville, the last spring freeze runs March 31 to April 12 and the first fall freeze runs October 28 to November 8, USDA zones 5b-8a, 4,937 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 Tennessee: 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 Overseed a Lawn in Tennessee
Overseed a Tennessee lawn once soil temperatures fall into the right range for your grass type, working backward from the first fall freeze so seedlings…
First and Last Frost Dates in Tennessee
Tennessee’s growing season runs from roughly March 31 to April 12 for the last spring frost, to October 28 to November 8 for the first fall freeze, based…
When to Pick Tomatoes in Tennessee, and Ripening the Rest
The short answer: pick tomatoes as soon as they show color break, that faint blush of pink or yellow at the blossom end, rather than waiting for full red…
When to Harvest Garlic in Tennessee, and How to Cure It
Garlic goes into the ground in Tennessee in fall and comes out the following summer, and the day to lift it isn’t fixed on a calendar.
When to Pick Apples in Tennessee, and How Long They Keep
In Middle Tennessee, apple harvest runs roughly from mid-August through late October, depending on variety, and that timing shifts later the higher you…
Does Insulation Keep a Home in Tennessee Cool?
Yes, insulation matters here, but it’s only half the story. Tennessee runs an average of 40 days a year at 90°F or hotter at the Nashville reference…
Does a Wall in Tennessee Need a Vapor Barrier?
Tennessee doesn’t give one answer. In the state’s 61 counties that sit in IECC Climate Zone 4A, the 2021 International Residential Code calls for an…
Heating With Pellets in Tennessee: What a Winter Takes
A Tennessee winter isn’t brutal, but it isn’t short either. Nashville’s climate data puts heating demand across roughly seven months, from October…
Tomato hornworm in Tennessee: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Tomato hornworms show up in Tennessee gardens from midsummer into early fall, once vines are tall and leafy enough to feed a caterpillar that can strip…