This video was produced by the Ohio State University Weed Science lab. Palmar Amaranth is currently making its way through Ohio and we are all interested to see how much of an issue it will be for agricultural producers in 2016. The past few years have seen gradual increases in reports with some issues at the conclusions of 2015 suggesting more trouble to come. Early ID and plant removal is the best management now.
This time of year we run the risk of freezing temperatures and the challenge of caring for plants in our landscape. This is the current USDA plant hardiness zone map for Ohio. Zanesville, Ohio is in zone 6a. An interactive map can be found at http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/#.
What do these plant hardiness zone mean? These zones are used to characterize average annual minimum winter temperatures across the United States. Zone 6a, for example, has average minimum temperatures of -10 to -5 degrees F. This allows us to make decisions as homeowners and landowners about the types of plants that we will put in our landscapes. Refer to the information that accompanies any purchased plant material for information specifying ideal growing zones.