Worcester, MA 01524 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Worcester, MA?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/23, about 238 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/21, about 181 frost-free days later.
Worcester sits in USDA Zone 6b (-5 to 0°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
About 8 weeks of growing season left in Worcester before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
How much risk comes with planting early here
04/23 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/11 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/05 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Worcester compares
About 181 days separate Worcester's last and first frost, putting it 24,380 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within MA, it ranks 205 of 712.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 6b and Worcester's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Worcester's dates instead of trusting one.