Hyssop · Saint Cloud, Minnesota, United States

When to plant hyssop in Saint Cloud

Main outdoor window

18 May - 15 Jun

A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.

Timed from last spring frost

4 May

In Saint Cloud, on your chosen risk.

Ready to pick

1 Jun - 30 Sep

If you plant at the start of the window.

The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.

Step by step in Saint Cloud

Download these planting dates (.ics)

Import into Apple Calendar, Google Calendar or Outlook. Dates use the selected risk level and are planning estimates, not frost alerts.

Each window is a planning range. Check the forecast, soil and cultivar before planting; a later date is not automatically safer in hot or wet conditions.

Start indoors

9 Mar - 6 Apr

Eight weeks before your last frost, under cover or on a windowsill.

Plant out

18 May - 15 Jun

Two weeks after your last frost.

Harvest

1 Jun - 30 Sep

Frost tolerance
Very-hardy
Damaged below
-25°C (-13°F)
Typical first crop
Year 1
Hardy to
Zone 3a–9a
Spacing
45 cm
Sowing depth
3 mm (0.1 in)
Sun
Full

Hyssop through the year

Against the frost risk in Saint Cloud

Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Frost risk Start indoors Plant Harvest Today
Open My Garden

Seasonal context

Rainfall and the growing season in Saint Cloud

June has the highest average precipitation (109 mm); January has the lowest (13 mm). Compare this pattern with the planting windows and your water supply.

Jan 13 mm
Feb 23 mm
Mar 38 mm
Apr 69 mm
May 94 mm
Jun 109 mm
Jul 88 mm
Aug 95 mm
Sep 76 mm
Oct 69 mm
Nov 27 mm
Dec 27 mm

During wetter months, check that beds and containers drain after heavy rain. During drier months, plan how you will keep seeds and new transplants watered. Monthly averages can hide long dry spells and intense storms; they do not show soil moisture, humidity or this week's weather.

Source: NASA POWER, corrected MERRA-2 precipitation, 2001–2020. Values are approximate monthly totals, including the water equivalent of snow, from the nearest 0.5° × 0.625° grid cell. This reference period differs from the temperature record. Rainfall provides context and does not change the calculated planting dates. Method and limitations.

Monthly growing conditions in Saint Cloud

Compare the planting window with the local temperature pattern. These are historical monthly averages, not this year's forecast or measured soil temperatures. Average frost days do not tell you whether a particular night will freeze.

NASA POWER climate averages, 1995–2024
MonthAverage lowAverage highFrost days
January -16.4°C (2.4°F) -6.7°C (20°F) 30.9
February -14.4°C (6°F) -3.7°C (25.3°F) 27.9
March -6.5°C (20.3°F) 4.4°C (40°F) 27.0
April 0.1°C (32.2°F) 12.4°C (54.3°F) 14.8
May 7.2°C (44.9°F) 19.6°C (67.4°F) 1.7
June 13.4°C (56.1°F) 25.1°C (77.1°F) 0.0
July 16.3°C (61.3°F) 28°C (82.4°F) 0.0
August 15.2°C (59.3°F) 27.2°C (80.9°F) 0.0
September 10.5°C (50.9°F) 23°C (73.4°F) 0.1
October 2.9°C (37.2°F) 14°C (57.2°F) 9.0
November -4.5°C (24°F) 4.3°C (39.8°F) 24.5
December -12°C (10.4°F) -3.8°C (25.2°F) 30.6

For hyssop, also check drainage, sunlight and cultivar requirements. See the rainfall context above; humidity, irrigation and local pest pressure are not calculated.

Local growing check

Before choosing hyssop for Saint Cloud

  • June is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 109 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.

The temperature and rainfall tables on this page show the underlying climate estimates. How these suitability checks work · Record what happens in your garden.

Before you plant hyssop

Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.

  • Frost tolerance does not make saturated or frozen soil suitable for planting. Wait until the bed can be worked without smearing or compacting it.
  • Harden off plants raised indoors: gradually expose them to outdoor light, wind and temperature before their final move into the bed.
  • Check mature size, drainage and cultivar suitability before choosing a permanent position. A suitable planting window does not guarantee long-term survival or fruiting.

Build a small branching shrub rather than a crowded herb patch

Use drained soil and suitable light; some shelter from intense afternoon sun can help in hot conditions. Allow for its mature spread so neighbouring plants do not keep the base shaded and damp.

Trim living growth to encourage a bushier shape and remove damaged stems. Seed, cuttings or division can establish replacements, but retain the species label because similar common names cover different plants. Leave part of the plant uncut when flowers are the priority.

What to record this season

Did trimming create a sturdier shape without sacrificing the flowering display you wanted? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.

Further reading: NC State Extension: Hyssopus officinalis . General crop guidance; local dates on this site are calculated separately. Source checked 19 September 2026 by Safe to Plant; this is not an expert review.

The reference describes plant identity and cultivation. Its regional calendar months and hardiness observations do not validate the calculated dates for another location.

How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy

Why these dates

Use drained soil and suitable light; some shelter from intense afternoon sun can help in hot conditions. Allow for its mature spread so neighbouring plants do not keep the base shaded and damp.

Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.

This calendar uses frost-relative offsets as a starting point. Hyssop are timed from 8 weeks before that frost for an indoor start, with planting out 2 weeks after it, and this page simply resolves those offsets against the frost date computed for Saint Cloud.

Saint Cloud is zone 4b, within the crop's general range. This is an initial cold-hardiness check; cultivar, exposure, drainage and unusual winters can still change the outcome.

The general establishment guide is around year 1, under suitable conditions. This is not a prediction for this location; cultivar, winter conditions and care determine whether it crops reliably.

See every crop timed for Saint Cloud →

Growing hyssop in Saint Cloud

Can I grow hyssop in Saint Cloud?

The calendar estimates a planting window, not a guarantee of success. June is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 109 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.

When should I plant hyssop in Saint Cloud?

Aim for 18 May - 15 Jun in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 30 May - 27 Jun - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.

When might hyssop be ready to harvest in Saint Cloud?

The estimated period is 1 Jun - 30 Sep, based on 90 to 110 days from the modeled planting date. Cultivar, planting material and growing conditions can change this interval; check the plant as well as the calendar.

How much frost will hyssop tolerate?

Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.