Harvesting and Storing Potatoes in Tennessee
Potatoes need to be out of Tennessee ground before the first fall frost, and cured potatoes need a spot that stays near 40-45°F all winter to keep.
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.
Potato Varieties That Suit Tennessee
The short answer: early and mid-season potato varieties suit Tennessee best, because the state’s growing window is bracketed by a late frost and an early…
What to Plant in Tennessee in September
September in Tennessee sits roughly eight to ten weeks before the average first frost, which makes it fall-garden month rather than a dead zone.
What to Plant in Tennessee in October
October in Tennessee splits into two very different gardening months. Early in the month, soil is still warm enough for quick-growing greens and root…
What to Plant in Tennessee in November
By November, the frost windows tracked by NOAA for Tennessee (October 28 to November 8) have already closed across most of the state.
What to Plant in Tennessee in May
May is the month Tennessee gardens shift into full gear. The state’s last spring frost typically falls between March 31 and April 12 in the Nashville…
What to Plant in Tennessee in March
Direct-sow only what shrugs off a hard freeze: spinach, kale, lettuce, peas, radishes, and onion sets go in now.
What to Plant in Tennessee in June
June in Tennessee means the frost risk is already behind you, so this is prime time for warm-season crops: beans, squash, cucumbers, melons, okra…
What to Plant in Tennessee in July
July in Tennessee sits deep in the growing season, months past the last frost window of March 31 to April 12 and months before the first fall frost of…
What to Plant in Tennessee in January
January puts almost nothing new into open Tennessee ground. The state’s last spring frost falls between March 31 and April 12, measured at the Nashville…