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Dill
Anethum graveolens
Dill blooms from June through August.
Mature size, hardiness zones, sun and the trait tags were checked against named botanical sources for this plant. The bloom months and water need on this page were not.
Growing Dill
Plant it in full sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 3–11. Expect it to reach about 3 ft tall and 12 in wide at maturity, in roughly 1 year.
When to plant Dill
Wait until all danger of frost has passed, then plant out Dill into warm soil; in most zones that means late spring. Planted then, it flowers from June to August.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar: for the middle of its range, start with zone 6 in April.
Good to know about Dill
Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note.
Worth knowing
Uneven watering and heat make dill bolt: it throws a flower stalk and stops making tender leaves. Steady, consistent moisture keeps it in leaf far longer. per NC State
Is dill frost-hardy?
Minnesota calls dill tender: sow after spring frost. Penn State and Wisconsin call it cool-season, taking light frost and sown before the last frost, but not a hard freeze. per Minnesota and Penn State
Direct-sow; do not transplant
Dill grows one long taproot, like a carrot, so it hates being moved. Sow it right where it will grow and barely cover the seed, since light helps germination. per NC State
Feeds swallowtails and beneficial insects
Its foliage feeds black swallowtail caterpillars, and its flowers feed parasitic wasps and hoverflies whose young eat aphids, dill's own main pest. Let some plants flower. per NC State and New Mexico State
Deer resistant
Deer tend to leave dill alone: the aromatic essential oils in its foliage make it unappealing. Resistance is not immunity, so very hungry deer may still sample it. per NC State and Wisconsin
Deadly wild lookalikes
Garden dill is safe, but its carrot family includes deadly poison hemlock and water hemlock, which share its feathery leaves and umbels. Never eat a wild umbellifer on looks alone. per Iowa State
What pairs well with Dill
Good companions share its growing conditions and add something it lacks: an earlier or later bloom, a lower carpet in front, or structure through winter.
Perennial Sunflower
Shares full sun and moderate water; overlaps, then carries the display into mid fall; both are strong pollinator plants; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Aster
Shares full sun and moderate water; blooms in early fall as this one finishes; both are strong pollinator plants, and they feed in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Rock Cress
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Flowering Crabapple
Shares full sun and moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both are strong pollinator plants, and they feed in different months; stands well above at 20 ft, a canopy to plant beneath.
Lilac
Shares full sun and moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; taller at 9.8 ft, for the layer behind it.
Autumn Crocus
Shares full sun and moderate water; blooms in early fall as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; lower at 6 in, for the front of the border.
Rosemary
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in early spring, before this one opens; both are strong pollinator plants, and they feed in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Viburnum
Shares full sun and moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; taller at 6.6 ft, for the layer behind it.
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