North Dakota Plant Hardiness Zones
North Dakota’s towns run from zone 3b to zone 4b: the average coldest winter night is -22.5°F at Richardton and -32.9°F at Rolette.
Hardiness zones in North Dakota
In USDA’s colors, neighboring states washed out. Zones follow elevation, coasts and cities down to half a mile. Drawn by WeatherOverTime from the USDA-ARS and Oregon State University PRISM Climate Group 2023 GIS data; this is not the official USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.
- 3b
- 4a
- 4b
Towns by zone
Each town’s 1991-2020 average annual extreme minimum at its center, read from the map’s 800 m grid. Warmest zone first.
4b Zone 4b, -25 to -20°F 13 towns
- Amidon-23.6°F
- Ashley-24.6°F
- Belfield-24.9°F
- Bowman-24°F
- Edgeley-22.8°F
- Ellendale-23.9°F
- Hankinson-24.7°F
- Hettinger-24.8°F
- Lidgerwood-23.8°F
- McClusky-24°F
- Richardton-22.5°F
- Underwood-25°F
- Wishek-24.9°F
4a Zone 4a, -30 to -25°F 92 towns
- Baldwin-25.3°F
- Beach-25.3°F
- Berthold-27°F
- Beulah-28.6°F
- Bismarck-25.4°F
- Bowbells-29.1°F
- Burlington-26.6°F
- Cannon Ball-26.3°F
- Carrington-25.3°F
- Carson-25.6°F
- Casselton-26.2°F
- Cavalier-28.7°F
- Center-26.4°F
- Cooperstown-28.4°F
- Crosby-29.4°F
- Devils Lake-27.3°F
- Dickinson-26.8°F
- Drayton-29°F
- Elgin-25.8°F
- Enderlin-25.4°F
- Fargo-25.6°F
- Fessenden-26.8°F
- Finley-26.5°F
- Forman-25.8°F
- Fort Totten-26.2°F
- Fort Yates-25.3°F
- Four Bears Village-27.6°F
- Garrison-26.5°F
- Glen Ullin-27.5°F
- Grafton-26.9°F
- Grand Forks-27°F
- Grand Forks Air Force Base-27.2°F
- Gwinner-25.2°F
- Harvey-27.3°F
- Harwood-26°F
- Hatton-26.9°F
- Hazen-27.3°F
- Hebron-26.9°F
- Hillsboro-26.4°F
- Horace-26°F
- Jamestown-25.2°F
- Kenmare-28.1°F
- Killdeer-25.8°F
- Kindred-26°F
- Lakota-27.7°F
- LaMoure-25.3°F
- Larimore-27.2°F
- Lincoln-25.7°F
- Linton-26.3°F
- Lisbon-25.9°F
- Mandan-25.9°F
- Mandaree-27.3°F
- Manning-26.1°F
- Mapleton-26.2°F
- Mayville-27.3°F
- Medora-28.3°F
- Milnor-25.5°F
- Minnewaukan-28.5°F
- Minot-26.1°F
- Minot Air Force Base-28.2°F
- Minto-27.2°F
- Mohall-29.2°F
- Mott-25.8°F
- Napoleon-26.2°F
- New England-26.3°F
- New Rockford-26.3°F
- New Salem-26.8°F
- New Town-27.4°F
- Northwood-27°F
- Oakes-26.2°F
- Park River-27.6°F
- Parshall-27°F
- Portland-27.3°F
- Ray-29.7°F
- Reiles Acres-25.7°F
- Rolla-29.5°F
- Sheldon-25.7°F
- Stanley-28.6°F
- Stanton-26.8°F
- Steele-26.3°F
- Surrey-27°F
- Thompson-27.4°F
- Turtle Lake-26.8°F
- Valley City-27.9°F
- Velva-29°F
- Wahpeton-25.9°F
- Walhalla-28.9°F
- Washburn-25.1°F
- Watford City-27.1°F
- West Fargo-25.8°F
- Williston-27.9°F
- Wilton-25.4°F
3b Zone 3b, -35 to -30°F 13 towns
Counties
At the county’s center; a county with hills or a coast spans several zones.
The zones
A plant hardiness zone is set by the average of each winter’s single coldest temperature, 1991 to 2020: zones are 10°F apart and each half zone, a and b, 5°F. It says how cold a winter night usually gets, not the coldest it has ever been, and nothing about summer heat, rain or soil. Plant labels give the coldest zone a perennial survives in.
| Zone | Average coldest night | In Celsius |
|---|---|---|
| 3b | -35 to -30°F | -37.2 to -34.4°C |
| 4a | -30 to -25°F | -34.4 to -31.7°C |
| 4b | -25 to -20°F | -31.7 to -28.9°C |
Sources
Hardiness zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, from the GIS data of the PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, which may be freely reproduced and redistributed. Drawn by WeatherOverTime from the USDA-ARS and Oregon State University PRISM Climate Group 2023 GIS data; this is not the official USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.