NOAA station USC00055446 · Colorado
Frost Dates for Maybell, CO
NOAA weather station Maybell (USC00055446), Colorado · elevation 5944 ft (1812 m) · hardiness zone 4a*
- Lower-risk planting dateafter July 1only 1 spring in 10 still has a frost later
- Typical last frostJune 1650% chance of a frost after it
- Typical first fall frostSeptember 950% chance of a frost before it
- Frost-free season83 daystypical year, 32°F
- Hardiness zone4acalculated*
The year at a glance
Frost dates (32°F)
| Chance | Last frost in spring after | First frost in fall before |
|---|---|---|
| 10% (unlikely) | July 1 | August 26 |
| 50% (typical) | June 16 | September 9 |
| 90% (likely) | May 31 | September 22 |
- Frost-free season (32°F, 50% chance)
- 83 days
- Hard frost (28°F), last in spring, 50% chance after
- June 1
- Hard frost (28°F), first in fall, 50% chance before
- September 19
The last 15 years (2006–2020 normals)
Typical last frost June 13 (3 days earlier than the 30-year normal), typical first fall frost September 9. Frost-free season 88 days.
A shorter, more recent NOAA period. The 30-year normals above remain the main reference: 15 years carry more year-to-year noise.
Add these dates to your calendar Yearly reminders for the typical last frost, the lower-risk planting date and the typical first fall frost (.ics).
How the chance of frost changes with the date
What actually happened in recent years
| Year | Last spring frost | First fall frost |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | June 12 | September 5 |
| 2022 | June 21 | September 11 |
| 2023 | June 24 | September 12 |
| 2024 | June 1 | August 30 |
| 2025 | June 23 | August 10 |
| 2026 | June 12 | season not over yet |
What these dates mean
Setting out tender crops on the early spring date of May 31 carries a 90% chance of a light frost, making it a gamble for growers in Maybell. The cautious spring date is July 1, when the chance of a frost drops to 10%.
June 16 is the 50% light-frost date, meaning there is a 50% chance of a frost later than this date; September 9 is the 50% light-frost date, meaning there is a 50% chance of a frost earlier than this date. The hard-frost 50% dates are June 1 and September 19, and a hard frost matters more because temperatures of 28 °F can damage plants more severely than a light frost at 32 °F.
In the fall the cautious date to finish harvesting tender crops is August 26, with only a 10% chance that frost has arrived earlier, while planting or holding tender crops until September 22 is a gamble, as that date carries a 90% chance of a frost.
How to read the probabilities
The dates are probabilities from 30 years of weather, not a forecast for this year.
- Spring: "10% after July 1" means that in about one spring out of ten a frost still happens after that date. The 90% date is the earliest: a frost after it happens in most years.
- Fall: "10% before August 26" means that in about one fall out of ten the first frost arrives before that date.
- 50% is the typical date: half of the years are earlier, half are later.
- A light frost (32°F) damages tender plants; a hard frost (28°F) also stops most hardy vegetables.
Nearby weather stations
- Meeker, CO 35 mi (56 km)
- Baggs, WY 43 mi (69 km)
- Hayden, CO 44 mi (71 km)
- Rangely, CO 46 mi (75 km)
- Jensen, UT 67 mi (107 km)
Sources
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, station USC00055446
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals
- PRISM Group, Oregon State University — 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone GIS datasets
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 2006–2020 (15-year normals), station USC00055446
- NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network – Daily (GHCN-Daily), observed daily minimum temperature, retrieved 2026-10-08
* Hardiness zone 4a: zone derived from PRISM 2023 grid at the station location (not the official USDA map). Source data: PRISM Group, Oregon State University.
Station coordinates: 40.5158, -108.0947.