Gloucester, MA 01938 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Gloucester, MA?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/04, roughly 249 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/12, about 160 frost-free days later.
Zone 6b (-5 to 0°F average annual minimum) comes from the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map; the frost dates above are the 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting NOAA station for Gloucester, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 6 weeks of growing season left in Gloucester before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
Why 05/04 isn't a guarantee
05/04 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/24 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/17 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Gloucester compares
Gloucester's growing season runs about 160 days, ranking 32,249 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MA, it ranks 536 of 712.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 6b and Gloucester's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Gloucester's dates instead of trusting one.