Washington DC has a humid subtropical climate. Winter is cool with average temperature of 38 °F (3.3 °C) in January while summer is hot and humid with average temperature of 79.2 °F (26.2 °C). Winter has annual snowfall averaging 14.7 inches (37 cm). During summer you can see frequent thunderstorms. Once very 4 – 6 years Washington DC gets blizzard. Tornadoes and hurricanes are rare.
The warmest temperature ever recorded in the state was 106 °F (41 °C) and the lowest was −15 °F (−26 °C). Washington DC USDA Hardiness Zones range from 5b to 8a.
Washington DC USDA Zones
Growing Palm Trees in Washington DC
Cold winters with a lot of snow and occasional blizzards, makes it challenging to grow palm trees. In order to grow palm trees successfully in this state, you will need to create microclimate and provide winter protection for your palms. Plant extremely cold hardy palms that are durable and can adjust to variety of conditions. Below are some palms that will grow in Washington DC. Keep in mind that you would need to live in zone 7b to grow any palms. Other zones are way too cold.
- European Fan Palm Tree – Zones 7b-11 (5 to 10 F)
- Pindo Palm Tree – Zones 7b-11 (5 to 10 F)
- Sago Palm Tree – Zones 7b-11 (5 to 10 F)
- Saw Palmetto Palm Tree – Zones 7a-11 (0 to 5 F)
- Windmill Palm Tree – Zones 7b-11 (5 to 10 F)
More Palm Trees»
Major Cities in District Of Columbia
Washington – Hardiness Zone 7a
~Susan Brian
P.S. If you have any questions, leave me a comment below and I do my best to answer them as soon as I can.
Hi I live an hour east of Vancouver, British Columbia in the Fraser valley.
Our plant hardiness zone is 8b, as is Seattle 2 1/2 hours drive from here.
All through the Fraser valley including Vancouver we have many Windmill palm trees, some as tall as 25-30 feet. And many tall banana plants.
I have a palm tree and 7 banana plants that are thriving.
Throughout our 3 month winter (Dec to Feb) we typically get highs of 5-7C (40-44F) and lows of 1-4C (34-39F).
Sometimes in mid Feb absolutely everything is blooming such as magnolias, fruit trees and daffodils, etc.
It quite often rains a lot during wintertime and therefore the temps warm up dramatically.
Our summers are long and hot ranging between 89-100F. With lots of sun.
I just wanted to know if palm trees are grown in DC.
Cheers