Manitoba Hardiness Zones — Zone by City & Region
Manitoba hardiness zones run from Zone 1b in Thompson to Zone 3b in Winnipeg's Red River Valley. Find your city's plant zone, last and first frost dates, and growing-season length — then plant with confidence.
Updated July 2026 · Natural Resources Canada Plant Hardiness Zone Map + Environment and Climate Change Canada normals (1991–2020)
Manitoba hardiness zones: the province spans roughly Zone 1b in the north to Zone 3b in the Red River Valley. Most Manitoba gardeners work in Zone 3: Winnipeg is Zone 3b; Brandon and the southwest are Zone 3a; Thompson is Zone 1b and Churchill is Zone 0. Zones come from Natural Resources Canada and are not identical to U.S. (USDA) zones of the same number. Find your exact zone at planthardiness.gc.ca or with our interactive Zone Finder.
🍁 Manitoba Zones at a Glance
Manitoba Hardiness Zone by City
Cities below are drawn from our frost-date dataset (Environment and Climate Change Canada normals + Natural Resources Canada zones), sorted from the warmest zone to the coldest. Tap a city with a link for its full month-by-month planting guide.
| City | Zone | Last Frost | First Frost | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winnipeg › | 3b | May 25 | Sep 22 | 120 days |
| Brandon | 3a | May 28 | Sep 15 | 110 days |
| Thompson | 1b | Jun 8 | Sep 5 | 89 days |
Frost dates are historical averages; actual dates vary year to year, so add 1–2 weeks of buffer before transplanting frost-sensitive crops. Wind-exposed and low-lying Prairie sites can run a sub-zone colder than the city reading (see below).
What Zone Is My Manitoba Town?
The Manitoba cities gardeners look up most often, with the plant hardiness zone for each — all drawn from Natural Resources Canada and this site's Environment and Climate Change Canada frost dataset, not fabricated. On the open Prairie, wind exposure and cold-air pooling can move a site a sub-zone off the city reading, so for a pinpoint answer check your exact address on the NRCan map at planthardiness.gc.ca or our Zone Finder.
What zone is Winnipeg?
Zone 3bManitoba's warmest — the Red River Valley and the city heat island; a short, hot, continental season.
Winnipeg frost dates & planting ›What zone is Brandon?
Zone 3aSouthwestern plains; a sub-zone cooler than the Red River Valley, with open, windy country.
Find Brandon on the Zone Finder ›What zone is Thompson?
Zone 1bNorthern Manitoba; a very short season and hard winters — lean on Zone 1–2 plants.
Find Thompson on the Zone Finder ›Manitoba's Zones, Warmest to Coldest
Why Manitoba Zones Aren't the Same as U.S. Zones
If you're buying plants or reading growing advice from American sources, don't take a USDA zone at face value. The U.S. system is based on winter minimum temperature alone. Natural Resources Canada's system factors in seven variables — winter minimum, summer maximum, frost-free period, rainfall, snow cover, and wind — so a Canadian "Zone 3" is defined differently from a USDA "Zone 3," even though the number is the same. NRCan publishes a separate USDA-method map for cross-border comparison if you need it.
Practical rule for Manitoba: use the Canadian (NRCan) zone from planthardiness.gc.ca for Canadian-sourced plants and Prairie seed catalogues, and treat a U.S. plant tag's zone as a rough guide only. When in doubt, pick the hardier (lower-numbered) option.
Source & how to cite: Zone assignments follow the Natural Resources Canada Plant Hardiness Zone Map (planthardiness.gc.ca); frost dates are Environment and Climate Change Canada climate normals (1991–2020). Enter your address on the NRCan map for a location-specific zone that accounts for local terrain.
Manitoba City Planting Guides
Your zone tells you what survives the winter; these guides tell you exactly what to sow and transplant, week by week, for your city.
Find your exact zone & what to plant now
Click your province on the interactive map, or jump straight to your city's frost-based planting timeline.