What is the USDA Growing Zone for North Mississippi? How Climate Zones Affect Your Lawn

USDA growing zones, also known as “plant hardiness” zones, can get confusing. But understanding this information can help ensure you not only choose the best plants for your landscape but also the best sod for your lawn.

You want to make sure that you’re choosing sod that is going to thrive in the North Mississippi climate zone.

Jump to Section

• What Are USDA Growing Zones?
• What Is the Growing Zone for New Albany, MS?
• How Do Growing Zones Affect Lawn Care?
• What is The Best Grass for North Mississippi’s Climate Zone?
• How Do Mississippi Grass Types Respond to Lawn Care?
• Choosing the Right Lawn Care in North Mississippi

Climate zones can have a direct impact on your lawn care results. Certain plants (including grass) simply won’t perform as well as others based on climate.

In this article, we will help you better understand climate zones for lawn care, including what sod types are going to perform best in our region.

What Are USDA Growing Zones?

Growing zones are also sometimes referred to as “plant hardiness zones” or “gardening zones.” They are based on a map developed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which divides the country into geographical sections based on average annual minimum winter temperatures.

Some plants are going to be more adaptable to cold weather than others, so understanding the USDA growing zones can help set you up for success in choosing plant material, including sod.

The map was created by the USDA in 1960.

But in recent years, the official map has been updated to accommodate changes in the climate and new winter temperature averages. You can see the latest version of the map here.

What Is the Growing Zone for New Albany, MS?

The USDA growing zone for New Albany, Mississippi, falls under Zone 8a. This zone shows an average minimum winter temperature between 10 and 15 degrees Fahrenheit.

In general, the North Mississippi climate zone falls into 8a and 8b, though a handful of counties do fall into zone 7b.

How Do Growing Zones Affect Lawn Care?

Just like growing zones should come into consideration when choosing plants for your landscape, you should consider USDA growing zones when choosing sod for your lawn.

If you choose a sod type that is not well-suited to our climate, you’re always going to be “fighting against” this uncontrollable factor. That can add up to subpar results, even if you’re doing “all the right things” for your lawn.

Of course, the regional climate is just one factor. You also need to consider the microclimate and the conditions of your actual property. For instance, shade is a major factor that comes into play when choosing sod.

Just like some grasses perform better in certain climate conditions than others, some grasses are going to need more sunlight than others.

All of these factors must be carefully weighed.

What is The Best Grass for North Mississippi’s Climate zone?

The best grasses for North Mississippi’s climate zone include Bermuda and Zoysia grass.

Some homeowners also use Centipede grass, St. Augustine grass, and occasionally, some fescues, particularly on properties that have a lot of shade (typically due to tall trees). These other three grass types can also work in our region.

Our top choices are Bermuda and Zoysia grass.

Bermuda and Zoysia are both warm-season grasses that are pretty tolerant of our local conditions.

Having worked on many lawns, we see these two grass types perform the best. But every situation is different, and a personalized decision should be made.

Keep in mind that these different grass species can respond differently to lawn care products and services, so it’s important to understand what’s growing in your lawn and what its needs will be.

Similarly, if you’ve “inherited” a lawn (when purchasing a home) that has a grass type growing that isn’t well-suited to our region (or to your specific property), that could be the reason why it’s under-performing.

How Do Mississippi Grass Types Respond to Lawn Care?

People have a misunderstanding that “grass is grass,” assuming that all lawns perform essentially the same. But different grass types definitely have different needs.

For instance, certain species of grass tend to handle certain herbicides better than others. That means if your lawn care provider is not paying attention to your grass type and just treating your lawn with the same products they’ve used on every other property, it could impact your results.

In addition, from a nutrient standpoint, if you fertilize fescues too much, it can create disease issues. This is a common problem that we do see on fescue lawns.

From a nutrient standpoint, Centipede grass and St. Augustine grass also don’t like too much nitrogen, so you do need to pay attention to the type of fertilizer being used on these grasses or else you could harm them.

Bermudagrass can handle the most nitrogen, with Zoysia close behind.

Choosing the Right Lawn Care in North Mississippi

Understanding USDA growing zones can be confusing, but it’s crucial when selecting sod to know which grass will thrive best in our region. And if you already have a lawn in place, you want to know what’s growing there so that you can ensure it’s cared for properly.

It’s also important to work with a lawn care company that takes these considerations into account. Your lawn care program should be customized to the type of grass that you have growing.

Unfortunately, many lawn care services take a blanket approach, treating all lawns the same. So, how do you choose the best lawn care in North Mississippi?

The key is to do your research.

Fortunately, that’s easier than ever with the Internet at our fingertips. These days, you can learn a lot about a company just from looking at its website. A website should provide a strong sense of what the company is all about. If you’re looking for a local service (vs. a larger national chain), you can also find out what type of company you’re getting.

The About Us Page is an excellent place to start your research and learn more about the company you might be hiring to care for your lawn.

When you’re on the website, look at what kind of resources the company offers in terms of education and advice. Helpful tools, such as blog articles and videos, mean that the company cares about educating you about your lawn. This is a sign that they want to see you succeed and form a partnership in the care of your lawn.

Online reviews are another way to research before hiring a lawn service. Third-party review sites like Google Reviews give you an inside look into how other people would rate the company that you’re considering.

Look for companies that have a rating of 4.5 stars or higher, with a larger number of reviewers. It becomes increasingly challenging to maintain a high rating as the number of reviews increases.

Putting in this effort ahead of time will help ensure that you’re happy with the results.

We’d love for you to consider Lawn & Pest Solutions to care for your lawn. We care deeply about our clients and want to see them happy with their results. That means educating them about their grass type and what is needed to achieve the lawn they desire.

Ready to learn why Lawn & Pest Solutions could be your choice for lawn care services in North Mississippi? We’re excited to learn more about you and help you have the best lawn on the block. Get started today with a free quote. Together, we can prepare a customized plan that is perfect for you and your lawn.