Historic Freeze in MN tonight: When is your First and Last Frost? Looking at the Frost dates USDA chart
By JULIE - 9:07:00 AM
We in Minneapolis are suppose to have a record breaking freeze tonight.
I plan to harvest like crazy today and drape plastic over my PVC pipe trellises and anchor it with left over bricks I have, and of course bring in all my pots outside. And pray.....
In Minneapolis our first known frost is Sept 15th, and we are talking a freeze not a frost. Wow what a short season we are having this year! We had a very late spring (the year before we had an early spring) and now a freeze on Sept 13th. I guess you never know what to expect with the weather when you live here. Thinking about frost and freeze dates I pulled up the USDA frost and freeze chart by zones and thought I'd share it to help everyone plan their fall gardening.
Please note that the dates on this chart are approximate. Most years, the first and last frost will fall within two weeks of the date on the chart, but some years, we get a very early frost or a late snow storm that throws the dates off. Use your judgement (and your local weather forecast!) along with this chart to plan your seed starting and planting.
First and Last Frost Dates, by Hardiness Zone
| USDA Hardiness Zone | First Frost Date | Last Frost Date |
| 1 | July 15th | June 15th |
| 2 | Autust 15th | May 15th |
| 3 | September 15th | May 15th |
| 4 | September 15th | May 15th |
| 5 | October 15th | April 15th |
| 6 | October 15th | April 15th |
| 7 | October 15th | April 15th |
| 8 | November 15th | March 15th |
| 9 | December 15th | February 15th |
| 10 | December 15th | January 31st (sometimes earlier) |
| 11 | No frost. | No frost. |
3 comments
Wow- hoping you get everything protected!
ReplyDeleteIt makes me SO SAD!! The peppers, squash and tomatoes are just getting going in my garden! :-(
ReplyDeleteWe will also be building something similar to what you describe today to cover the garden. I would love to see a picture of yours. Usually I use old bed sheets, but my husband wants to put up a temporary greenhouse type thing. I hope to be able to build something next year that is more sturdy so we can leave it out in the early spring and late fall.
I HATE this time of year!! Good luck with your preparations and covering everything. It's going to be a busy afternoon/evening. Let's hope it won't get as cold as they're predicting!
Amy
Hoosier Girl- thanks for the concern
ReplyDeleteAmy- That's too bad that your warm weather crops started so late and are just getting going. I'll post pics about my attempt to save my garden but I already know it won't be pretty. I plan to have a better way to protect my garden next year too. I'd love to hear what you come up with next year for that. Hope your garden's OK.