Frost dates Tennessee Memphis

Frost dates in Memphis, Tennessee

Last spring frost Mar 16 First fall frost Nov 16 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Memphis is Mar 16 and the average first fall frost is Nov 16, measured at MEMPHIS 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 1632°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostNov 1632°F, 50% probability
Days between them245average 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 27Dec 3
50%Mar 16Nov 16
10%Apr 4Nov 2

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Mar 16, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Apr 4. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Nov 2.

Measured at: MEMPHIS INTL AP, TN (NOAA station USW00013893), about 7 miles away at 254 ft, 30 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • W MEMPHIS, AR (NOAA station USC00037712), about 8 miles away at 215 ft, 29 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Mar 19, first fall frost Nov 10
  • WEST MEMPHIS MUNI AP, AR (NOAA station USW00053959), about 11 miles away at 214 ft, 18 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Mar 16, first fall frost Nov 11

Seed-starting schedule for Memphis, TN

Counted from a last frost date of Mar 16 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Dec 814 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekDec 8 to Dec 22
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionDec 8 to Dec 22
  2. Week of Dec 1513 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyDec 15 to Dec 22
  3. Week of Dec 2212 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachDec 22 to Jan 5
  4. Week of Jan 510 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiJan 5 to Jan 19
  5. Week of Jan 129 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceJan 12 to Jan 19
  6. Week of Jan 198 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperJan 19 to Feb 2
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardJan 19 to Feb 2
  7. Week of Jan 267 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoJan 26 to Feb 9
  8. Week of Feb 26 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilFeb 2 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outSpinachFeb 2 to Feb 23
  9. Week of Feb 164 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishFeb 16 to Mar 2
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Feb 16
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipFeb 16 to Mar 2
    • Set transplants outBroccoliFeb 16 to Mar 2
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutFeb 16 to Mar 2
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outLettuceFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Feb 16
  10. Week of Feb 233 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberFeb 23 to Mar 2
    • Set transplants outParsleyFeb 23 to Mar 2
  11. Week of Mar 22 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoMar 2 to Mar 9
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Mar 2
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Mar 2
  12. Week of Mar 16Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Mar 16
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Mar 16
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Mar 16
  13. Week of Mar 231 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoMar 23 to Mar 30
    • Set transplants outCucumberMar 23 to Mar 30
    • Set transplants outTomatoMar 23 to Mar 30
  14. Week of Mar 302 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outEggplantMar 30 to Apr 6
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Mar 30
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Mar 30

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

More in Tennessee

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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