When to plant Raspberry
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 Raspberry 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 | Not available | Not available | Not available | – |
| 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.
Raspberry's timing is the plainest on this page. University of Minnesota Extension says to "plant raspberries in May once the soil is workable" (Planting raspberries), a season-and-soil rule rather than a frost-week count.
That source gives no frost-relative week figure and no fall-planting alternative, and it doesn't distinguish bare-root from plug timing beyond one instruction: plant as soon as possible after your order arrives. This page doesn't add a week count or a fall option UMN itself didn't state.
Raspberry is commonly sold as dormant bare-root canes or as potted plugs; either way, UMN's guidance is to get it in the ground promptly on delivery rather than storing it and waiting.
Frost hardiness
Hardy. Tolerates hard frost. Can go in the ground before the last frost date.
Sourcing notes
UMN Extension: "Plant raspberries in May once the soil is workable." No frost-relative week figure or fall-planting option given in this source; guide does not distinguish bare-root vs. plug timing beyond "plant as soon as possible after delivery."
Related crops
Growing zones for this crop
Nurseries near these locations
Sources
- University of Minnesota Extension, Planting raspberries (accessed 2026-08-04)