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Frost dates for Chaska 2 NW, Minnesota

Half of years have their last spring frost by May 5, but 1 year in 10 still frosts after May 19.

A frost date is really a percentile from 30 years of records at a nearby weather station: in about half of years a frost still comes after the median date. Both numbers are below, so you can choose the risk yourself.

The odds

Last spring frost

How often a frost still comes on or after each date.

1 year in 10
May 19
1 year in 5
May 14
3 years in 10
May 10
2 years in 5
May 7
Half of years (the median)
May 5

First fall freeze

How often the first freeze comes on or before each date.

1 year in 10
September 22
1 year in 5
September 27
3 years in 10
September 30
2 years in 5
October 2
Half of years (the median)
October 5
Growing season
about 151 days
Hardiness zones nearby
4b, 5a
Summer days
a usual high of about 27 °C80 °F
Lettuce and spinach run to seed
June to August, in hot, long days (how we know)

Summer and rain

A growing garden needs about 25 mm1 in of water a week, rain and watering together. Here is what a normal month brings.

Month by month

January
high ~-5 °C23 °F · low ~-16 °C4 °F · rain ~22 mm0.9 in
February
high ~-3 °C27 °F · low ~-14 °C7 °F · rain ~23 mm0.9 in
March
high ~5 °C40 °F · low ~-7 °C19 °F · rain ~42 mm1.7 in
April
high ~13 °C56 °F · low ~1 °C33 °F · rain ~82 mm3.2 in
May
high ~20 °C68 °F · low ~7 °C44 °F · rain ~112 mm4.4 in
June
high ~26 °C78 °F · low ~13 °C56 °F · rain ~134 mm5.3 in
July
high ~28 °C83 °F · low ~16 °C60 °F · rain ~104 mm4.1 in
August
high ~27 °C80 °F · low ~14 °C58 °F · rain ~116 mm4.6 in
September
high ~23 °C73 °F · low ~10 °C50 °F · rain ~83 mm3.3 in
October
high ~15 °C58 °F · low ~2 °C36 °F · rain ~72 mm2.8 in
November
high ~5 °C41 °F · low ~-5 °C24 °F · rain ~42 mm1.6 in
December
high ~-2 °C28 °F · low ~-11 °C11 °F · rain ~34 mm1.3 in

Where these numbers come from

NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 Climate Normals, the Chaska 2 NW station (listed by NOAA as Chaska 2NW, USC00211468), at 44.81, -93.63. These are that station’s own records, unshifted. The further your garden is from it, the less exactly they describe your ground. The planner finds the nearest station to your garden and lowers its confidence with distance, so no number is presented as if it were measured in your garden.

Cold air also pools in low ground on the clear, still nights when frost happens, so a hollow can freeze while a slope a few hundred feet away does not. No table can know that about your garden. A few seasons of your own logged frosts can.

ZIP codes nearest this station

55315, 55317, 55318, 55322, 55331, 55339, 55345, 55346, 55347, 55352, 55356, 55359…

+14 moreShow fewer

55360, 55364, 55367, 55368, 55372, 55375, 55379, 55384, 55386, 55387, 55388, 55397, 56011, 56071.

Nearby stations

The nearest stations and how their last-frost dates compare. Together they show how frost varies across your area.

What can I plant now? ›

When do I plant? · Where the dates come from

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