The first frost marks the time when tender plants succumb to the advancing season and and we are left with the few hardy types that can withstand a cold climate. Of course you can extend the season if you have a greenhouse, but generally the onset of winter means that you are restricted to the small number of plants that can survive and cope with the cold. The five cold hardy plants are described in an article by Liz Baessler which I found on the Gardening Know How website.

The first frost. It?s a spectre that looms over the head of every cold climate gardener. It wipes out sensitive plants, like peppers and tomatoes, and it heralds even colder killing frosts to come. For gardeners in very cold climates, it always seems to come much too soon. Short of building a hoop house or a greenhouse, there?s not much you can do to stop the march of winter. You can, however, choose cold hardy plants that can fight back against it. In places with cold winters, they?ll last long into the season, and in milder places they should last straight through until spring!
Here are our top 5 plants for cold climates:

1. Pansies ? These flowers thrive in cool temperatures and will keep on blooming well below freezing. Once temperatures fall lower than the mid 20s, pansy flowers and buds will die back. The plants will survive, though, and with heavy mulching they?ll last through a mild winter to bloom again in a few months!

2. Snapdragon ? These tall spires of complex flowers can usually be grown as perennials in climates as cold as zone 7. With some heavy mulching, the roots of snapdragon plants may survive and come back in the spring in even colder zones. The flowers can handle a light frost and will keep blooming through the fall pretty much anywhere.

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