USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map
USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map provides data on average annual minimum temperatures. The USDA updated it this year using more recent weather data collected during the 30-year period from 1976 to 2005 and newer satellite imagining techniques. Check to see if your gardening zone may have been bumped up or down by inputting your zip code. Realize that cold hardiness is just one plant characteristic and that many other elements, such as sun, soil type, wind, and overall plant health, influence whether a plant will do well in your yard.
Clever Gardening Technique
Root Ugly Cacti Pads to Expand Your Collection
Some prickly pear cacti pads may look sunburned, have a chunk chewed out by a hungry critter, or just look a little worse for wear. Cacti pads will produce roots regardless of orientation. Lay the ugly pad flat on loosened soil and it will still send roots into the ground, and eventually produce new upright pads. Do this in filtered light, or provide temporary protection from full sun, until it can root and establish.