Arkansas Planting Zones by City and ZIP Code
Arkansas runs from zones 7a to 8b; 54% of its ZIPs are 8a, Little Rock is 8a and Fayetteville is 7a.
Arkansas runs from zones 7a to 8b
The coldest night of the winter averages 0°F to 5°F in the coldest of Arkansas’s ZIP codes and 15°F to 20°F in the warmest. Most of the state is zone 8a.
Planting zones of Arkansas cities
| City | Zone | Coldest night, on average | Since 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Little Rock72201 | 8a | 10°F to 15°F | same as 2012 |
| Fayetteville72701 | 7a | 0°F to 5°F | half a zone warmer than 2012 (6b) |
| Fort Smith72901 | 8a | 10°F to 15°F | half a zone warmer than 2012 (7b) |
| Jonesboro72401 | 8a | 10°F to 15°F | half a zone warmer than 2012 (7b) |
| Texarkana71854 | 8b | 15°F to 20°F | half a zone warmer than 2012 (8a) |
| Hot Springs71901 | 8a | 10°F to 15°F | half a zone warmer than 2012 (7b) |
Tap a ZIP for that address’s frost dates and this month’s jobs.
Find your zone anywhere in Arkansas
A ZIP code or a town gives you its zone, how it moved since 2012, the frost dates at the nearest NOAA station, and the jobs for this month timed from them.
What to plant in Arkansas this month
The calendar for each of Arkansas's main zones, from vegetables to pruning and winter protection, each job tied to the extension page it comes from. Pick a month, or read the whole year below it.
Timed from the median frost dates of the 55 NOAA stations in Arkansas’s zone 8a: last spring frost Mar 26, first fall frost Nov 6. Your own ZIP’s frost dates move every window, so the ZIP tool times them for you.
Pick a month above to see every job in it.
The year at a glance
- Start vegetable seeds indoorsDec to Mar
- Sow vegetables in the gardenFeb to Apr
- Sow the fall vegetable gardenJul to Sep
- Set out transplantsFeb to Apr
- Plant trees and shrubsSep 25 to Apr 9
- Plant garlicOct 23 to Nov 27
- Plant pre-chilled tulip bulbsNov 20 to Dec 31
- Divide fall-blooming perennialsMar 5 to Apr 16
- Divide spring and summer-blooming perennialsSep 25 to Nov 6
- Prune trees and summer-flowering shrubs while dormantFeb 12 to Mar 26
- Prune spring-flowering shrubs after they bloomMar 12 to May 7
- Prune out cold damageMar 26 to May 7
- Cover tender plants on a freezing nightOct 30 to Mar 26
- Cut back perennials after a hard freezeNov 13 to Dec 11
What changed in Arkansas since 2012
Every ZIP on both mapsCompared ZIP by ZIP from the 2023 and 2012 USDA tables; 691 Arkansas ZIP codes appear in both.
Why Arkansas’s zones moved
Of the cities above, Fayetteville went from 6b to 7a, Fort Smith went from 7b to 8a, Jonesboro went from 7b to 8a, Texarkana went from 8a to 8b and Hot Springs went from 7b to 8a.
The USDA explains the national picture: “When compared to the 2012 map, the 2023 version reveals that about half of the country shifted to the next warmer half zone, and the other half of the country remained in the same half zone.” The new map uses 1991 to 2020 and more than 13,000 weather stations, so it draws Arkansas’s hills, valleys and cities more finely than the 2012 map did.
A warmer zone changes which perennials and shrubs come through the winter, not when the garden gets planted; that still follows the frost dates.
Frost dates and seed starting in Arkansas
Arkansas planting zone questions
Planting zones by state
Sources. USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP code tables (2023 and 2012), PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University; USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map; USDA Unveils Updated Plant Hardiness Zone Map (USDA Agricultural Research Service, November 15, 2023); NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, annual/seasonal, by station (v1.0.1); NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. Zones are read from the PRISM ZIP code tables, read Oct 9, 2026; a ZIP code’s zone is the zone at its center. The calendar’s extension sources are listed on the planting zones page and under each job.