United States regional guide · MN
Permaculture in Minnesota
Minnesota has severe winters, warm humid summers, prairie in the west, forests in the north, and thousands of wetland edges. Cold hardiness, wind shelter, snow behavior, and short-season productivity dominate plant selection.
USDA span
3a–5b
Census region
Midwest
Climate starting point
USDA hardiness zones in Minnesota
Minnesota includes USDA zones 3a–5b. Hardiness zones describe typical annual extreme minimum temperatures; within-state elevation, wind, water, soil, and urban heat can change what succeeds on a particular site.
Regional plant starting points
Plants to explore for a Minnesota design
These plants are useful starting points for researching a design in Minnesota. Confirm each choice against your exact zone, site conditions, local ecology, and management goals.
Lowbush Blueberry
Vaccinium angustifolium
- Layer
- Groundcover
- Type
- Perennial
Lingonberry
Vaccinium vitis-idaea
- Layer
- Groundcover
- Type
- Perennial
Chokecherry
Prunus virginiana
- Layer
- Sub-Canopy
- Type
- Deciduous Tree
Silver Buffaloberry
Shepherdia argentea
- Layer
- Shrub
- Type
- Perennial
American Hazelnut
Corylus americana
- Layer
- Shrub
- Type
- Perennial
American Black Currant
Ribes americanum
- Layer
- Shrub
- Type
- Perennial