Frost dates Texas Houston

Frost dates in Houston, Texas

Last spring frost Feb 2 First fall frost Dec 25 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Houston is Feb 2 and the average first fall frost is Dec 25, measured at HOUSTON-PORT, about 5 miles from the city centre. Below: how sure those dates are, and what to start, sow and set out each week.

Average last spring frostFeb 232°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostDec 2532°F, 50% probability
Days between them326average 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 31Jan 21
50%Feb 2Dec 25
10%Mar 5Nov 27

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Feb 2, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Mar 5. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Nov 27.

Measured at: HOUSTON-PORT, TX (NOAA station USC00414326), about 5 miles away at 19 ft, 14 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • HOUSTON HOBBY AP, TX (NOAA station USW00012918), about 10 miles away at 44 ft, 28 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Jan 30, first fall frost Dec 28
  • HOUSTON INTERCONT AP, TX (NOAA station USW00012960), about 15 miles away at 95 ft, 25 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Feb 13, first fall frost Dec 9

Seed-starting schedule for Houston, TX

Counted from a last frost date of Feb 2 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Oct 2714 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekOct 27 to Nov 10
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionOct 27 to Nov 10
  2. Week of Nov 313 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyNov 3 to Nov 10
  3. Week of Nov 1012 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryNov 10 to Nov 24
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachNov 10 to Nov 24
  4. Week of Nov 2410 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliNov 24 to Dec 8
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutNov 24 to Dec 8
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageNov 24 to Dec 8
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleNov 24 to Dec 8
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiNov 24 to Dec 8
  5. Week of Dec 19 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceDec 1 to Dec 8
  6. Week of Dec 88 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerDec 8 to Dec 22
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantDec 8 to Dec 22
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperDec 8 to Dec 22
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardDec 8 to Dec 22
  7. Week of Dec 157 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoDec 15 to Dec 29
  8. Week of Dec 226 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilDec 22 to Jan 5
    • Set transplants outSpinachDec 22 to Jan 12
  9. Week of Jan 54 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Jan 5
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Set transplants outBroccoliJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutJan 5 to Jan 19
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Jan 5
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Jan 5
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Jan 5
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Jan 5
    • Set transplants outLettuceJan 5 to Jan 12
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Jan 5
  10. Week of Jan 123 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberJan 12 to Jan 19
    • Set transplants outParsleyJan 12 to Jan 19
  11. Week of Jan 192 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonJan 19 to Jan 26
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinJan 19 to Jan 26
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashJan 19 to Jan 26
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashJan 19 to Jan 26
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniJan 19 to Jan 26
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoJan 19 to Jan 26
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Jan 19
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Jan 19
  12. Week of Feb 2Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Feb 2
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Feb 2
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Feb 2
  13. Week of Feb 91 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoFeb 9 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outCucumberFeb 9 to Feb 16
    • Set transplants outTomatoFeb 9 to Feb 16
  14. Week of Feb 162 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outEggplantFeb 16 to Feb 23
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Feb 16
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Feb 16

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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