Or click this link for the latest USDA PHZM for our area
Per the newly updated Plant Hardiness Zone Maps (PHZM) based on 1991-2020 weather data, Guadalupe County is now in USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 9a (minimum low temperatures of 20 – 25 degrees F), with most soil types of Blackland Prairie, Claypan, and Postoak Savannah. We have an average annual rainfall of 34 inches and usually hot, dry summer. Gardening results in other areas may vary! Please note the USDA PHZM should serve as a general guide for growing perennial plants. They are based on the AVERAGE lowest temperatures NOT the lowest ever.
Chill hours map – Guadalupe County is in the 600 hour region with a range of 450 to 750 hours. That’s a big variation, and the reason has to do with our local geography. A fruit tree needing more than 850 hours is not going to bloom correctly if your neighborhood has less than 550 hours. Or a tree rated for 550 hours may be damaged by frost in an area that typically has 900 chill hours.
You can find the chill hours reported for weather stations near your location by using the TexasET Network page. Go to about the middle of the page in the South Central grouping and find the location nearest you. Click on the location and then choose “Chill Units” at the top of the table. (NOTE: Choose any station other than those with an asterisk. The TexMesoNet data hasn’t been integrated fully into the chill unit models.)
Data from TAMU Overton TX (some interesting data here): https://etweather.tamu.edu/chill/
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