Horehound in Zone 5a & 5b

Marrubium vulgare

When to plant horehound in zone 5b

Zones 5a and 5b share the same average frost dates in our data, so this page covers both.

Method: Direct sow: Direct-sow outside. Horehound doesn't transplant well, or doesn't need the extra time indoors.

Start indoors	Not typically started indoors
Direct sow / transplant outside	Apr 26–May 3
Estimated harvest	Apr 25 '28–May 2 '28 (First real harvest the season after planting)

Spacing: 1 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 1-2 ft.

Horehound is a grey-green, woolly-leaved mint relative grown for a bitterness that mostly appears in throat lozenges.

How horehound fits zone 5's season

Zone 5b's frost-free window runs about 148 days, from May 10 to October 5. Horehound takes about 1 growing season to reach first worthwhile harvest, so what matters here is how many of these seasons it gets, not whether one is long enough.

Horehound is hardy in zones 3-9, so in zone 5b it stays in the ground through winter and comes back rather than being replanted. Allow about 1.5 ft of spread at maturity.

Good companions

No standout companions recorded yet for Horehound.

Where to buy horehound seeds

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