When to plant Mint
Computed from land-grant Extension planting-window rules (cited below), localized to real ZIP-level median frost dates, not a single national guess. These are national-generic rules by hardiness class; individual state Extension offices layer their own regional adjustment on top (earlier in the Deep South, later in the Upper Midwest). Enter your ZIP for your own dates, or read the four representative locations below.
Planting windows and crop timing here are computed from USDA/NOAA climate data and the university extension sources cited below, not a site visit or soil test. Treat this as a starting point: local conditions vary, and a local nursery or extension office can advise on your exact site. See our full Disclaimer.
Representative timing, by climate band
When to plant Mint in four US climates
Each column is the most nursery-dense location in our directory within that USDA zone band, computed from that location's own real median frost dates, not a made-up example.
| Stage |
Zones 1-5 (cold winters)
Fort Plain, NY |
Zones 6-7 (temperate)
McMinnville, TN |
Zones 8-9 (warm)
Apopka, FL |
Zones 10-13 (hot, frost rare or absent)
Loxahatchee, FL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start seed indoors | Not available | Not available | Not available | – |
| Direct-sow outside | Not available | Not available | Not available | – |
| Transplant outside | Apr 22–May 20 | Mar 24–Apr 21 | Feb 10–Mar 10 | – |
| Fall planting | Not available | Not available | Not available | – |
| Expected harvest | Not available | Not available | Not available | – |
Zones 10-13 (hot, frost rare or absent) (Loxahatchee, FL): Frost is rare here (about 359 frost-free days a year); most years see little or no hard freeze. This is a hardy crop. In climates like this one, hardy and semi-hardy crops typically go in during the cooler months (fall through late winter), not on a frost-relative schedule.
Mint goes into the ground by division around your last frost date. Colorado State University Extension rates it a hardy perennial to USDA zone 4 (CMG GardenNotes #731), and University of Minnesota Extension confirms it survives Minnesota winters outright (Growing herbs in home gardens).
Both Colorado State and Clemson Cooperative Extension recommend propagating mint by division in early spring rather than from seed, which Clemson calls unreliable for this crop. At the nursery, expect to buy mint as a potted division, not seed. Both extensions also flag mint as aggressively spreading, best kept contained in a pot sunk into the ground rather than planted directly into a bed, though that's a placement note, not a timing one.
Hardy to zone 4, mint overwinters outdoors across nearly all of this site's range without extra protection.
Frost hardiness
Hardy. Tolerates hard frost. Can go in the ground before the last frost date.
Sourcing notes
Herbaceous perennial, USDA zones 4-9 (CSU); UMN confirms mint is 'hardy to Minnesota winters' and is propagated by division in early spring rather than seed (seed is unreliable per Clemson). Aggressively spreading/invasive -- best contained in pots sunk in ground (CSU/Clemson). No sourced DTM.
Related crops
Growing zones for this crop
Nurseries near these locations
Sources
- Colorado State University Extension, Colorado Master Gardener Program, Herb Gardening (CMG GardenNotes #731) (accessed 2026-08-04)
- University of Minnesota Extension, Growing herbs in home gardens (accessed 2026-08-04)