Frost dates North Carolina Charlotte

Frost dates in Charlotte, North Carolina

Last spring frost Mar 30 First fall frost Nov 3 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Charlotte is Mar 30 and the average first fall frost is Nov 3, measured at CHARLOTTE DOUGLAS AP, about 6 miles from the city centre. Below: how sure those dates are, and what to start, sow and set out each week.

Average last spring frostMar 3032°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostNov 332°F, 50% probability
Days between them218average frost-free season
How sure is that date? NOAA probability levels for a 32°F freeze
ProbabilityFreeze still comes after (spring)First freeze has come by (fall)
90%Mar 12Nov 17
50%Mar 30Nov 3
10%Apr 14Oct 22

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Mar 30, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Apr 14. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Oct 22.

Measured at: CHARLOTTE DOUGLAS AP, NC (NOAA station USW00013881), about 6 miles away at 728 ft, 28 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • GASTONIA, NC (NOAA station USC00313356), about 17 miles away at 700 ft, 24 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Mar 27, first fall frost Nov 9
  • GASTONIA MUNI AP, NC (NOAA station USW00053870), about 18 miles away at 797 ft, 21 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Mar 24, first fall frost Nov 9

Seed-starting schedule for Charlotte, NC

Counted from a last frost date of Mar 30 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Dec 2214 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionDec 22 to Jan 5
  2. Week of Dec 2913 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyDec 29 to Jan 5
  3. Week of Jan 512 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachJan 5 to Jan 19
  4. Week of Jan 1910 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiJan 19 to Feb 2
  5. Week of Jan 269 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceJan 26 to Feb 2
  6. Week of Feb 28 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardFeb 2 to Feb 16
  7. Week of Feb 97 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoFeb 9 to Feb 23
  8. Week of Feb 166 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilFeb 16 to Mar 2
    • Set transplants outSpinachFeb 16 to Mar 9
  9. Week of Mar 24 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishMar 2 to Mar 16
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Mar 2
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipMar 2 to Mar 16
    • Set transplants outBroccoliMar 2 to Mar 16
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutMar 2 to Mar 16
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Mar 2
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Mar 2
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Mar 2
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Mar 2
    • Set transplants outLettuceMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Mar 2
  10. Week of Mar 93 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberMar 9 to Mar 16
    • Set transplants outParsleyMar 9 to Mar 16
  11. Week of Mar 162 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Mar 16
  12. Week of Mar 30Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Mar 30
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Mar 30
  13. Week of Apr 61 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Set transplants outCucumberApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Set transplants outTomatoApr 6 to Apr 13
  14. Week of Apr 132 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Apr 13
    • Set transplants outEggplantApr 13 to Apr 20
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Apr 13
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Apr 13
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Apr 13
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Apr 13
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Apr 13
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Apr 13

Not in the city centre? Look up your own ZIP code

More in North Carolina

Where the numbers come from

Sources and method

Frost dates. U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Annual/Seasonal Climate Normals (1991-2020), NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (Palecki, Durre, Applequist, Arguez and Lawrimore, 2021). These are 30-year station statistics for 1991 to 2020. "Frost" here means an air temperature of 32°F or lower at the station. We use 6,539 stations that have at least 10 years of record and a published date; 176 more are stations where a freeze is too rare for NOAA to date, and 180 are stations cold enough to have frost risk all year.

Probability level. The headline dates are NOAA's 50% level: in half of years the last spring freeze comes later than that date, and in half of years the first fall freeze comes earlier. The 10% and 90% levels are shown next to them. For tender plants, the 10% spring date is the safer one to plan from: a freeze follows it in only 1 year in 10.

Which station. Your ZIP code is matched to the nearest of those stations by straight-line distance from the ZIP code's centre point (GeoNames, geonames.org, CC BY 4.0; 40,979 ZIP codes in the 50 states and DC). Nearest is not always most alike: a station on a hill, in a valley or by the water can differ from your garden by a week or more. That is why the station's name, distance and elevation are shown with every result, along with two more stations nearby. NOAA makes the same point: the normals are limited between stations as distance grows horizontally and vertically.

Seed-starting offsets. Growing Vegetables: When to Plant Your Vegetable Garden, a fact sheet from University of New Hampshire Extension. It gives each crop's weeks from seed to transplant and when it is safe to set out or sow relative to the last frost. The method is theirs too: take the planting date and count back the seed-to-transplant weeks. Where the fact sheet gives a range of planting dates, the start-indoors dates count back from the earliest one. The figures used, as the fact sheet states them:

  • Basil: Seed to transplant 6-8 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Bean: Plant seed in garden after last frost.
  • Broccoli: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Brussels sprout: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Cabbage: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Cauliflower: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2 weeks before last frost.
  • Celery: Seed to transplant 10-12 weeks; set out after last frost.
  • Cucumber: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 1-2 weeks after last frost.
  • Eggplant: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 2-3 weeks after last frost.
  • Kale: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Kohlrabi: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Leek: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Lettuce: Seed to transplant 4-5 weeks; set out 3-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Melon: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Onion: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Parsley: Seed to transplant 9-10 weeks; set out 2-3 weeks before last frost.
  • Parsnip: Plant seed in garden after last frost.
  • Pepper: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Potato: Plant seed potatoes in garden 1-2 weeks before last frost.
  • Pumpkin: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Radish: Plant seed in garden 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Spinach: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 3-6 weeks before last frost.
  • Summer squash: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Sweet potato: Plant slips in garden 1-2 weeks after last frost.
  • Swiss chard: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2 weeks before last frost; or plant seed in garden 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Tomato: Seed to transplant 6-8 weeks; set out 1-2 weeks after last frost.
  • Turnip: Plant seed in garden 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Winter squash: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Zucchini: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.

Not on the calendar. The same fact sheet times these by soil temperature, not by frost date, so they get no date here:

  • Pea: as soon as the soil thaws.
  • Beet: when the soil warms to 45°F.
  • Carrot: when the soil warms to 60°F.
  • Corn: when the soil warms to 60°F.
  • Cucumber, pumpkin, summer squash, winter squash, zucchini: direct-sow when the soil warms to 70°F.

Rutabaga is left out: the fact sheet gives it New Hampshire calendar dates, not a frost offset.

The fact sheet was written for New Hampshire. The offsets are relative to the last frost, so they carry to other places with a spring frost, but where winters are mild many cool-season crops are grown in fall and winter instead. Your state's extension service has the local calendar. Dates are 30-year statistics, not a forecast: check the forecast before setting tender plants out.

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