How Hardy is Rosemary?
Answered by: Richters Staff
Question from: Rachel Darling
Posted: Before April 1998

My question is, just how hardy is rosemary? I live in zone 5, and I’ve been told that I would have to keep it in a pot and bring it inside during the winter. However, I was wondering if it would be possible to just cover it with mulch really well (like a rose) and then leave it in the ground over winter. This is the first time that I will be growing an herb garden. I have grown vegetables and flowers so I have some experience, but I have never grown herbs before. If you have any advice for first time growers, I would sincerely appreciate it. Have a nice day.

Rosemary is hardy from zones 7 to 10, so it is unlikely that you would succeed in wintering it outdoors even with a protective mulch. There is a hardier variety called ‘Arp’ that some customers in zone 6 have managed get to winter outdoors. We were not able to get it to survive our zone 5, however.

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