Frost dates New York Yonkers

Frost dates in Yonkers, New York

Last spring frost Apr 20 First fall frost Oct 26 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Yonkers is Apr 20 and the average first fall frost is Oct 26, measured at DOBBS FERRY-ARDSLEY, about 6 miles from the city centre. Below: how sure those dates are, and what to start, sow and set out each week.

Average last spring frostApr 2032°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostOct 2632°F, 50% probability
Days between them189average 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%Apr 4Nov 10
50%Apr 20Oct 26
10%May 6Oct 10

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Apr 20, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after May 6. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Oct 10.

Measured at: DOBBS FERRY-ARDSLEY, NY (NOAA station USC00302129), about 6 miles away at 200 ft, 20 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • BRONX, NY (NOAA station USC00300961), about 7 miles away at 39 ft, 12 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Apr 1, first fall frost Nov 16
  • TETERBORO AP, NJ (NOAA station USW00094741), about 10 miles away at 9 ft, 23 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Apr 3, first fall frost Nov 4

Seed-starting schedule for Yonkers, NY

Counted from a last frost date of Apr 20 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Jan 1214 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekJan 12 to Jan 26
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionJan 12 to Jan 26
  2. Week of Jan 1913 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyJan 19 to Jan 26
  3. Week of Jan 2612 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryJan 26 to Feb 9
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachJan 26 to Feb 9
  4. Week of Feb 910 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliFeb 9 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutFeb 9 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageFeb 9 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleFeb 9 to Feb 23
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiFeb 9 to Feb 23
  5. Week of Feb 169 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceFeb 16 to Feb 23
  6. Week of Feb 238 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerFeb 23 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantFeb 23 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperFeb 23 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardFeb 23 to Mar 9
  7. Week of Mar 27 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoMar 2 to Mar 16
  8. Week of Mar 96 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilMar 9 to Mar 23
    • Set transplants outSpinachMar 9 to Mar 30
  9. Week of Mar 234 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishMar 23 to Apr 6
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Mar 23
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipMar 23 to Apr 6
    • Set transplants outBroccoliMar 23 to Apr 6
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutMar 23 to Apr 6
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Mar 23
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Mar 23
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Mar 23
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Mar 23
    • Set transplants outLettuceMar 23 to Mar 30
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Mar 23
  10. Week of Mar 303 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberMar 30 to Apr 6
    • Set transplants outParsleyMar 30 to Apr 6
  11. Week of Apr 62 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoApr 6 to Apr 13
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Apr 6
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Apr 6
  12. Week of Apr 20Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Apr 20
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Apr 20
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Apr 20
  13. Week of Apr 271 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoApr 27 to May 4
    • Set transplants outCucumberApr 27 to May 4
    • Set transplants outTomatoApr 27 to May 4
  14. Week of May 42 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom May 4
    • Set transplants outEggplantMay 4 to May 11
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom May 4
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom May 4
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom May 4
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom May 4
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom May 4
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom May 4

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

More in New York

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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