Frost dates Ohio Cleveland

Frost dates in Cleveland, Ohio

Last spring frost Apr 8 First fall frost Nov 12 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Cleveland is Apr 8 and the average first fall frost is Nov 12, measured at CLEVELAND BURKE AP, about 1 mile from the city centre. Below: how sure those dates are, and what to start, sow and set out each week.

Average last spring frostApr 832°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostNov 1232°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 29Nov 28
50%Apr 8Nov 12
10%Apr 20Nov 1

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Apr 8, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Apr 20. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Nov 1.

Measured at: CLEVELAND BURKE AP, OH (NOAA station USW00004853), about 1 mile away at 584 ft, 20 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • CLEVELAND, OH (NOAA station USW00014820), about 10 miles away at 763 ft, 30 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Apr 20, first fall frost Nov 3
  • ELYRIA 3 E, OH (NOAA station USC00332599), about 20 miles away at 730 ft, 24 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Apr 22, first fall frost Nov 1

Seed-starting schedule for Cleveland, OH

Counted from a last frost date of Apr 8 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Dec 3114 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekDec 31 to Jan 14
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionDec 31 to Jan 14
  2. Week of Jan 713 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyJan 7 to Jan 14
  3. Week of Jan 1412 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryJan 14 to Jan 28
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachJan 14 to Jan 28
  4. Week of Jan 2810 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliJan 28 to Feb 11
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutJan 28 to Feb 11
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageJan 28 to Feb 11
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleJan 28 to Feb 11
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiJan 28 to Feb 11
  5. Week of Feb 49 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceFeb 4 to Feb 11
  6. Week of Feb 118 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerFeb 11 to Feb 25
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantFeb 11 to Feb 25
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperFeb 11 to Feb 25
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardFeb 11 to Feb 25
  7. Week of Feb 187 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoFeb 18 to Mar 4
  8. Week of Feb 256 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilFeb 25 to Mar 11
    • Set transplants outSpinachFeb 25 to Mar 18
  9. Week of Mar 114 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishMar 11 to Mar 25
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Mar 11
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipMar 11 to Mar 25
    • Set transplants outBroccoliMar 11 to Mar 25
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutMar 11 to Mar 25
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Mar 11
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Mar 11
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Mar 11
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Mar 11
    • Set transplants outLettuceMar 11 to Mar 18
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Mar 11
  10. Week of Mar 183 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberMar 18 to Mar 25
    • Set transplants outParsleyMar 18 to Mar 25
  11. Week of Mar 252 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonMar 25 to Apr 1
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinMar 25 to Apr 1
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashMar 25 to Apr 1
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashMar 25 to Apr 1
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniMar 25 to Apr 1
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoMar 25 to Apr 1
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Mar 25
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Mar 25
  12. Week of Apr 8Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Apr 8
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Apr 8
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Apr 8
  13. Week of Apr 151 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoApr 15 to Apr 22
    • Set transplants outCucumberApr 15 to Apr 22
    • Set transplants outTomatoApr 15 to Apr 22
  14. Week of Apr 222 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Apr 22
    • Set transplants outEggplantApr 22 to Apr 29
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Apr 22
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Apr 22
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Apr 22
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Apr 22
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Apr 22
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Apr 22

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

More in Ohio

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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