Watering Through a Dry Spell in West Virginia
West Virginia gardens need about an inch of water a week through the growing season, but August rainfall alone covers only part of that, and with 16 days…
Gardening in West Virginia
Everything we have worked out for West Virginia: 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 Charleston, the last spring freeze runs April 9 to April 23 and the first fall freeze runs October 18 to November 1, USDA zones 5a-7a, 4,159 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 West Virginia: 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 Pots and Containers in West Virginia
West Virginia containers need watering more often than garden beds in the same yard, because a pot holds only a few gallons of soil against a sky that…
When to Plant Onions in West Virginia
West Virginia sits at a latitude where the calendar and the variety bin matter equally.
The Best Onion Varieties for West Virginia
West Virginia sits close to the line that separates the intermediate-day onion group from the long-day group, and the state’s reference point, Charleston…
Forcing Spring Bulbs Indoors in West Virginia
Forcing works here because West Virginia’s own cold doesn’t line up with a gardener’s calendar, not because the state lacks winter.
Growing Spring Bulbs in Containers in West Virginia
West Virginia’s winters run cold enough, most years, to satisfy a spring bulb’s dormancy requirement without any help from a gardener.
Planting Spring Bulbs in West Virginia: What Will Come Back, and What Will Not
West Virginia’s mountain winters run cold enough to satisfy nearly every classic spring bulb, but timing and location inside the state matter more here…
Canning at Altitude in West Virginia: What Your Elevation Changes
Charleston, the reference city for West Virginia’s elevation data, sits at 597 feet, where water boils somewhere between 208°F and 212°F depending on the…
Firewood in West Virginia: Which Woods Your Winter Actually Needs
Firewood in West Virginia has to answer to one number: an average low of 26.1°F in the coldest month, measured at Charleston.
Watering a Garden in West Virginia: How Much, How Often, and the Local Rules
West Virginia gardens live on a mix of mountain shade, river-valley heat, and rain that never arrives on a predictable schedule.