Nanking Cherry in Zone 3a & 3b
Prunus tomentosa
Yes, nanking cherry grows in zones 3a and 3b and comes back each year. Set out nursery plants May 2–May 9.
When to plant nanking cherry in zone 3b
Zones 3a and 3b share the same average frost dates, so this page covers both.
Method: Buy as a start: Buy as a nursery start and transplant outside. It's slow or unreliable from seed, so most gardeners skip seed-starting it entirely.
| Start indoors | Not started from seed; buy as a nursery start |
|---|---|
| Direct sow / transplant outside | May 2–May 9 |
| Estimated harvest | First real harvest in year 4 |
Spacing: about 50 square feet per plant (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 8-12 ft.
Before you plant: Nanking cherry has a winter-hardiness note for zone 3b. See the details below.
Plant alongside it in zone 3b
These go outside within two weeks of nanking cherry in zone 3b, so one planting day can cover them.
- BlueberryMay 2–May 9
- CurrantMay 2–May 9
- GooseberryMay 2–May 9
- RaspberryMay 2–May 9
- StrawberryMay 9–May 16
- AppleMay 16–May 23
Nanking cherry is an extremely cold- and heat-tolerant cherry relative, ornamental enough to double as an edible hedge or windbreak, with a profusion of white spring flowers that bloom before the leaves emerge.
How nanking cherry fits zone 3's season
Zone 3b's frost-free window runs about 98 days, from May 30 to September 5. Nanking cherry takes about 3 growing seasons to reach first worthwhile harvest, so what matters here is how many of these seasons it gets, not whether one is long enough.
Nanking cherry is hardy in zones 2-7, so in zone 3b it stays in the ground through winter and comes back rather than being replanted. Allow about 8 ft of spread at maturity.
Nanking Cherry planting windows in every zone
Zone 3b is highlighted. Useful for comparing against a neighbouring zone, or for a garden somewhere else.
| Zone | Start indoors | Sow or plant out | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2a & 2b | Buy as a start | Apr 22–Apr 29 | First real harvest in year 4 |
| 3a & 3b (your zone) | Buy as a start | May 2–May 9 | First real harvest in year 4 |
| 4a & 4b | Buy as a start | Apr 17–Apr 24 | First real harvest in year 4 |
| 5a & 5b | Buy as a start | Apr 12–Apr 19 | First real harvest in year 4 |
| 6a & 6b | Buy as a start | Mar 28–Apr 4 | First real harvest in year 4 |
| 7a & 7b | Buy as a start | Mar 13–Mar 20 | First real harvest in year 4 |
Zone 2 sows before zone 3 here, which looks wrong and is not. USDA zones rank winter cold, not season length, and zone 2 is mostly interior Alaska, where hard winters come with warm summers. More on what a zone measures.
Good companions
No well-established companions for nanking cherry.
Where to buy nanking cherry starts
Nanking cherry is almost always bought as a nursery start rather than seeded. Check a local nursery or garden center; we haven't vetted online start/plant suppliers yet.
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See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing nanking cherry" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Nanking Cherry in USDA zone 3b: when to start seeds indoors, when to direct-sow, and when to expect a harvest.
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