Does a Wall in Wisconsin Need a Vapor Barrier?
Yes. Wisconsin’s 72 counties fall into IECC Climate Zones 6A (42 counties) and 5A (30 counties), and the 2021 International Residential Code exempts only…
Gardening in Wisconsin
Everything we have worked out for Wisconsin: 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 Milwaukee, the last spring freeze runs April 16 to April 29 and the first fall freeze runs October 17 to October 29, USDA zones 3b-6a, 2,808 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 Wisconsin: 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.
Heating With Pellets in Wisconsin: What a Winter Takes
Milwaukee’s reference station logs about 6,450 heating degree days a year, one of the coldest tallies in the Midwest, spread across a heating season that…
Tarnished plant bug in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Tarnished plant bugs show up in Wisconsin gardens as soon as overwintering adults wake up in spring, and they stay active clear through September.
Thrips in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Thrips show up in Wisconsin gardens anywhere from April through September, with numbers climbing fastest during hot, dry stretches of summer when their…
Sap beetles in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Sap beetles show up in Wisconsin gardens from spring through fall, but they don’t follow a tidy calendar the way some pests do.
Common stalk borer in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Common stalk borer shows up in Wisconsin gardens starting in spring, but the state’s extension service doesn’t publish a date specific to this insect.
Wireworms in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Wireworms show up in Wisconsin soil starting in early spring, right as the ground warms past the mid-40s, and they stay active through the cool months of…
Cutworms in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Cutworms show up in Wisconsin gardens in spring, right as transplants go into the ground, and they keep working through early summer while soil is still…
Corn earworm in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Corn earworm shows up in Wisconsin gardens from midsummer into early fall, with numbers building through July and peaking by mid-August as moths move…
Onion maggot in Wisconsin: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Onion maggot damage in Wisconsin tracks soil warming each spring, not a fixed date on the calendar.