When to Plant Trees and Shrubs in Minnesota: The Twin Cities Planting Calendar
Minnesota’s growing season is short. Compared to most of the country, our planting windows are tight, the wrong-time mistakes are unforgiving, and the difference between a thriving five-year-old shrub and a dead twig is often nothing more than what month it went in the ground.
Here’s the Twin Cities planting calendar — month by month — with the two windows that actually work, the one to skip if you can, and the rules of thumb that have nothing to do with the calendar but everything to do with whether your new tree survives its first winter.
The short version
- Best window: late August through mid-October. Warm soil, cool air, fall rains. Plants put on root growth without leaf stress and harden off before freeze.
- Second-best window: late April through May. Ground has thawed, frost danger is past, plants have the full season ahead of them.
- Avoid: June through early August. Heat and humidity stress new transplants. You can do it, but you’ll be watering hard all summer.
- Don’t: mid-October through mid-April. Frozen or freezing ground kills new root growth before it can establish.
Month by month
April
Don’t plant until the ground has fully thawed. In the Twin Cities that’s typically the third or fourth week of April. If you can push a shovel into the soil without standing on it, you’re clear. Cold-soil planting before thaw causes root rot and frost-heaving.
Good month for: bare-root planting (the trees are still dormant, perfect for transplant), spring perennials, cool-season vegetables.
Hold off on: evergreens. Wait for soil to warm into May.
May
Prime spring planting month. Soil is warming, frost danger is essentially past after Mother’s Day, and plants have 5–6 months ahead of them to establish before first freeze.
Good month for: essentially everything — trees, shrubs, evergreens, perennials, native plants.
Watch for: late May frosts on tender plants. Cover with frost cloth if a hard freeze is forecast.
June
Transition month. You can still plant successfully but watering becomes critical. The deeper you get into June, the more attention new plantings need.
Good month for: container-grown shrubs and perennials, balled-and-burlapped trees with consistent irrigation.
Watch for: transplant shock once daytime temps climb past 80°F. Water deeply at planting and every 2–3 days for the first month.
July
The hardest planting month. Heat, humidity, and reliable mid-summer dry stretches mean new plantings struggle. Possible? Yes. Recommended? No.
Plant only if: you have to (e.g., a closing date forced your install), and only with diligent watering and deep mulching.
Watch for: scorch on newly planted leaves, wilting in afternoons, dry root balls. Water at the base of plants in the early morning.
August
The window starts re-opening in the last week. Late August is the beginning of Minnesota’s best planting window — soil is still warm enough for vigorous root development, but air temperatures are cooling enough to reduce transplant stress.
Good month for (late Aug): evergreens (especially), trees, shrubs, fall perennials, native plants.
September
The single best planting month in Minnesota. Warm soil, cool air, regular rainfall, and 6–8 weeks before hard freeze for root establishment. If you’re going to plant once a year, plant in September.
Good month for: all shrubs, all trees including evergreens, fall-blooming perennials, spring bulbs.
Watch for: the temptation to put off planting “until I have more time” — that time becomes October, then becomes “next spring.”
October
The window closes mid-month in the Twin Cities. First two weeks are still solid for hardy deciduous shrubs and trees. After the 15th, you’re rolling the dice on whether roots get enough establishment time before the ground freezes.
Good month for: hardy deciduous shrubs and trees through about Oct 15, bulbs through end of month.
Hold off on: evergreens after Oct 1 — they need more time to develop roots that can supply water through winter desiccation.
November through March
The ground is frozen or freezing. Don’t plant. Plan instead — order plants for spring delivery, prep beds with mulch, and prune dormant trees and shrubs on dry days above freezing.
Why fall beats spring (for most plants)
Spring planting feels intuitive — the world is waking up, the garden centers are full. But fall is biologically better for most woody plants in Minnesota. Here’s why:
Soil stays warmer than the air. In September and early October, soil temperatures in the Twin Cities hold in the 60s well after air temperatures drop into the 40s and 50s. Roots love that — they keep growing aggressively while the plant’s top is shutting down for dormancy.
No leaf-out stress. A spring-planted shrub has to put out new leaves and grow new roots simultaneously. A fall-planted shrub puts everything into roots.
Fall rain is reliable. September and October average about 2.5–3 inches of rain in the metro. Compare to July and August, where dry stretches of 2–3 weeks are common.
Cool air means less transplant shock. Hot afternoons that stress a June-planted shrub are gone by mid-September.
The exception is bare-root planting, which has to happen in spring while the plant is still dormant.
How long does fall planting actually need?
The rule of thumb is six weeks of root growth before ground freeze. In the Twin Cities, hard ground freeze typically arrives between November 10 and November 25. Counting back six weeks puts the absolute last-call planting date around October 1.
For evergreens, push that earlier — late August or first half of September. Evergreens lose moisture through their needles all winter and need root systems large enough to replace what they lose.
After-planting essentials
Timing isn’t the whole game. Get these right or even September-planted shrubs will fail.
- Plant at the right depth. Root flare even with or slightly above grade. Buried root flares are the #1 killer of new trees and shrubs.
- Dig wide, not deep. 2–3x the root ball width. Loose soil around the roots is where new root growth happens.
- Mulch 2–3 inches deep, kept off the trunk. Insulates the root zone and holds moisture.
- Water deeply and slowly. A 5-gallon shrub wants about 5 gallons of water at planting and every 5–7 days for the first month, then every 7–14 days through the rest of the growing season.
- Stop watering 2–3 weeks before ground freeze. Late watering pushes new growth that gets killed by winter. Late October is usually the last water for the year on deciduous plants. Evergreens may benefit from one deep watering in early December if fall was dry.
FAQ
Can I plant in summer if I water constantly? Yes, but expect setbacks. Even with perfect watering, transplant shock in mid-summer means slower establishment, more leaf scorch, and a higher chance of dieback the following spring. Save yourself the stress and wait for late August if you possibly can.
Is it too late to plant in late October? Generally yes, especially for evergreens. Hardy deciduous shrubs might survive an Oct 25 planting if winter arrives late and mulch is heavy, but you’re rolling the dice. We’d rather hold a plant in our nursery over winter than send it home to die.
What about container-grown vs. balled-and-burlapped vs. bare root? - Container-grown — most forgiving, plantable any month in the growing season. - Balled and burlapped — best planted spring or fall, never mid-summer. - Bare root — spring only, while still dormant.
Does the timing change in the suburbs vs. urban Minneapolis? Slightly. Urban heat islands (downtown Minneapolis, downtown St. Paul) hold soil warmth a few days longer in fall, giving you a tiny extension on the planting window. Rural-edge suburbs (Lakeville, Maple Grove, Stillwater) get cold sooner and you should lean a week earlier on fall close-out.
Plan your install
Browse our shrubs and trees collections, then pencil your install on the right month. For step-by-step on what to do once the plant arrives, read How to Plant a Privacy Hedge in Minnesota — the planting technique applies to any tree or shrub.