Northampton, MA 01012 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Northampton, MA, ZIP 01012
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/13, roughly 258 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/02, about 144 frost-free days later.
Northampton sits in USDA Zone 6a (-10 to -5°F average annual minimum). The dates above are NOAA's 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting station, a 30-year average, not a forecast.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 6a around Northampton has about 5 weeks left before the first fall frost — that's the usual window to get a cold frame up if you want to keep harvesting past it.
The actual range around Northampton's last frost
05/13 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/29 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/26 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Northampton compares
Northampton's growing season runs about 144 days, ranking 36,332 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MA, it ranks 689 of 712.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Northampton's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Northampton can differ from the 01012 normal.