Frost dates Texas El Paso

Frost dates in El Paso, Texas

Last spring frost Mar 2 First fall frost Nov 20 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in El Paso is Mar 2 and the average first fall frost is Nov 20, measured at EL PASO INTL AP, about 7 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 232°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostNov 2032°F, 50% probability
Days between them263average 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%Feb 12Dec 2
50%Mar 2Nov 20
10%Mar 19Nov 6

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Mar 2, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Mar 19. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Nov 6.

Measured at: EL PASO INTL AP, TX (NOAA station USW00023044), about 7 miles away at 3,918 ft, 28 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • SANTA TERESA AP, NM (NOAA station USC00298127), about 15 miles away at 4,109 ft, 18 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Mar 23, first fall frost Nov 11
  • LA TUNA 1 S, TX (NOAA station USC00414931), about 17 miles away at 3,870 ft, 17 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Feb 28, first fall frost Nov 20

Seed-starting schedule for El Paso, TX

Counted from a last frost date of Mar 2 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Nov 2414 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekNov 24 to Dec 8
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionNov 24 to Dec 8
  2. Week of Dec 113 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyDec 1 to Dec 8
  3. Week of Dec 812 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryDec 8 to Dec 22
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachDec 8 to Dec 22
  4. Week of Dec 2210 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiDec 22 to Jan 5
  5. Week of Dec 299 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceDec 29 to Jan 5
  6. Week of Jan 58 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardJan 5 to Jan 19
  7. Week of Jan 127 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoJan 12 to Jan 26
  8. Week of Jan 196 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Set transplants outSpinachJan 19 to Feb 9
  9. Week of Feb 24 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Feb 2
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outBroccoliFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Feb 2
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Feb 2
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Feb 2
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Feb 2
    • Set transplants outLettuceFeb 2 to Feb 9
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Feb 2
  10. Week of Feb 93 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberFeb 9 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outParsleyFeb 9 to Feb 16
  11. Week of Feb 162 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Feb 16
  12. Week of Mar 2Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Mar 2
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Mar 2
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Mar 2
  13. Week of Mar 91 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoMar 9 to Mar 16
    • Set transplants outCucumberMar 9 to Mar 16
    • Set transplants outTomatoMar 9 to Mar 16
  14. Week of Mar 162 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outEggplantMar 16 to Mar 23
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Mar 16

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

More in Texas

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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