NOAA station USC00337857 · Ohio
Frost Dates for South Point, OH
NOAA weather station South Point (USC00337857), Ohio · elevation 553 ft (169 m) · hardiness zone 7a*
- Lower-risk planting dateafter May 4only 1 spring in 10 still has a frost later
- Typical last frostApril 1650% chance of a frost after it
- Typical first fall frostOctober 3050% chance of a frost before it
- Frost-free season196 daystypical year, 32°F
- Hardiness zone7acalculated*
The year at a glance
Frost dates (32°F)
| Chance | Last frost in spring after | First frost in fall before |
|---|---|---|
| 10% (unlikely) | May 4 | October 18 |
| 50% (typical) | April 16 | October 30 |
| 90% (likely) | April 2 | November 10 |
- Frost-free season (32°F, 50% chance)
- 196 days
- Hard frost (28°F), last in spring, 50% chance after
- April 2
- Hard frost (28°F), first in fall, 50% chance before
- November 8
The last 15 years (2006–2020 normals)
Typical last frost April 15 (1 day earlier than the 30-year normal), typical first fall frost November 1 (2 days later). Frost-free season 200 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 | April 23 | November 3 |
| 2022 | April 20 | October 20 |
| 2023 | April 26 | November 1 |
| 2024 | April 23 | November 22 |
| 2025 | April 13 | October 26 |
| 2026 | May 3 | season not over yet |
What these dates mean
The cautious fall date in South Point for finishing the harvest is October 18, when there is only a 10% chance a light frost has arrived.
For a gardener, the 50% light-frost dates—April 16 in spring and October 30 in fall—mark the points at which a frost is as likely as not. The 50% hard-frost dates are April 2 and November 8, indicating when a temperature of 28 °F is equally probable.
A cautious plan uses May 4 as the spring light-frost date for setting out tender crops, because only a 10% chance of frost remains after that day, and the same caution applies to October 18 for ending harvest. Hard frosts at 28 °F can damage plants more severely than light frosts at 32 °F, so the hard-frost dates are especially relevant for protecting tender vegetation.
How to read the probabilities
The dates are probabilities from 30 years of weather, not a forecast for this year.
- Spring: "10% after May 4" 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 October 18" 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
- near Huntington, WV 5 mi (7 km)
- near Sciotodale, OH 28 mi (45 km)
- Hogsett RC Byrd Dam, WV 29 mi (46 km)
- Dunlow, WV 34 mi (55 km)
- Gallipolis, OH 35 mi (57 km)
Sources
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, station USC00337857
- 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 USC00337857
- NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network – Daily (GHCN-Daily), observed daily minimum temperature, retrieved 2026-10-08
* Hardiness zone 7a: zone derived from PRISM 2023 grid at the station location (not the official USDA map). Source data: PRISM Group, Oregon State University.
Station coordinates: 38.4239, -82.5931.