Frost dates Texas Corpus Christi

Frost dates in Corpus Christi, Texas

Last spring frost Jan 31 First fall frost Dec 22 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Corpus Christi is Jan 31 and the average first fall frost is Dec 22, measured at CORPUS CHRISTI NWS, 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 frostJan 3132°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostDec 2232°F, 50% probability
Days between them325average 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%Dec 24Feb 1
50%Jan 31Dec 22
10%Mar 2Nov 29

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Jan 31, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Mar 2. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Nov 29.

Measured at: CORPUS CHRISTI NWS, TX (NOAA station USC00412011), about 7 miles away at 44 ft, 13 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • CORPUS CHRISTI, TX (NOAA station USW00012924), about 7 miles away at 45 ft, 28 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Jan 28, first fall frost Dec 21
  • C C BOTANICAL GARDENS, TX (NOAA station USC00412013), about 10 miles away at 16 ft, 16 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Jan 29, first fall frost Dec 24

Seed-starting schedule for Corpus Christi, TX

Counted from a last frost date of Jan 31 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Oct 2514 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekOct 25 to Nov 8
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionOct 25 to Nov 8
  2. Week of Nov 113 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyNov 1 to Nov 8
  3. Week of Nov 812 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryNov 8 to Nov 22
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachNov 8 to Nov 22
  4. Week of Nov 2210 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliNov 22 to Dec 6
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutNov 22 to Dec 6
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageNov 22 to Dec 6
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleNov 22 to Dec 6
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiNov 22 to Dec 6
  5. Week of Nov 299 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceNov 29 to Dec 6
  6. Week of Dec 68 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerDec 6 to Dec 20
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantDec 6 to Dec 20
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperDec 6 to Dec 20
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardDec 6 to Dec 20
  7. Week of Dec 137 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoDec 13 to Dec 27
  8. Week of Dec 206 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilDec 20 to Jan 3
    • Set transplants outSpinachDec 20 to Jan 10
  9. Week of Jan 34 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishJan 3 to Jan 17
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Jan 3
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipJan 3 to Jan 17
    • Set transplants outBroccoliJan 3 to Jan 17
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutJan 3 to Jan 17
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Jan 3
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Jan 3
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Jan 3
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Jan 3
    • Set transplants outLettuceJan 3 to Jan 10
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Jan 3
  10. Week of Jan 103 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberJan 10 to Jan 17
    • Set transplants outParsleyJan 10 to Jan 17
  11. Week of Jan 172 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonJan 17 to Jan 24
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinJan 17 to Jan 24
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashJan 17 to Jan 24
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashJan 17 to Jan 24
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniJan 17 to Jan 24
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoJan 17 to Jan 24
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Jan 17
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Jan 17
  12. Week of Jan 31Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Jan 31
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Jan 31
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Jan 31
  13. Week of Feb 71 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoFeb 7 to Feb 14
    • Set transplants outCucumberFeb 7 to Feb 14
    • Set transplants outTomatoFeb 7 to Feb 14
  14. Week of Feb 142 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Feb 14
    • Set transplants outEggplantFeb 14 to Feb 21
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Feb 14
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Feb 14
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Feb 14
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Feb 14
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Feb 14
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Feb 14

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

More in Texas

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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