You’ll love it. The growing season is far more consistent and longer cold/warm cycles than intermountain climates, we don’t really do the hard defrost until at least march, so plants can have a full winter and recover, as well as frequently protected from the snow. Most winters lately have not been as consistent, which is probably what you’re used to, but everything here remains quite damp through winter under the snow so succulents and cacti don’t do as well in may spots. Plus the hardiness zone here is solidly 4b/5a, which does limit your options some. Winters aren’t typically sunny unless it is ass-freezing cold. Good luck! I have houseplants to the winter, I recommend that if you can’t go without gardens for the season, and they’re so easy to tend to outside in the summer, mine flourish as well as they would in Florida between may and September, though this last year it was from early April until late October without frost! Our soils are clay and or sand; glacial and not volcanic, so water retains much better, maybe too well, which does kill some very xeric plants but any natives between prairie and forest, you probably have 100+ more native genera that can survive than in ID It is drier in winter than you are anticipating. Chapstick for you and humidifiers for plants are almost required Then there is snow. It doesn’t often melt , and if it does it usually does so slowly, and as it accumulates it is able to insulate short herbaceous plants and keeps our soil warmer. Snow very slowly melts and sublimes, so it helps maintain moisture in the ground.

6 points kanu0630

Just a heads up, there is a gardening in MN subreddit that is really great! You might find some good info there.

1 points Negative_Cap_5011

University of Minnesota Extension has great resources for gardeners that will answer many questions: https://extension.umn.edu/yard-and-garden

In winter I use a couple of small hydroponic growers and sunny windows to keep herbs and salad going, and I fantasize about starting seeds but don't really do much until February or March.

1 points dertyler

You’ll love it. The growing season is far more consistent and longer cold/warm cycles than intermountain climates, we don’t really do the hard defrost until at least march, so plants can have a full winter and recover, as well as frequently protected from the snow. Most winters lately have not been as consistent, which is probably what you’re used to, but everything here remains quite damp through winter under the snow so succulents and cacti don’t do as well in may spots. Plus the hardiness zone here is solidly 4b/5a, which does limit your options some. Winters aren’t typically sunny unless it is ass-freezing cold. Good luck! I have houseplants to the winter, I recommend that if you can’t go without gardens for the season, and they’re so easy to tend to outside in the summer, mine flourish as well as they would in Florida between may and September, though this last year it was from early April until late October without frost! Our soils are clay and or sand; glacial and not volcanic, so water retains much better, maybe too well, which does kill some very xeric plants but any natives between prairie and forest, you probably have 100+ more native genera that can survive than in ID It is drier in winter than you are anticipating. Chapstick for you and humidifiers for plants are almost required Then there is snow. It doesn’t often melt , and if it does it usually does so slowly, and as it accumulates it is able to insulate short herbaceous plants and keeps our soil warmer. Snow very slowly melts and sublimes, so it helps maintain moisture in the ground.