Barnstable Town, MA 02647 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Barnstable Town, MA?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/16, roughly 231 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/30, about 195 frost-free days later.
Zone 7a (0 to 5°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 Barnstable Town, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 9 weeks of growing season left in Barnstable Town 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
04/16 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/05 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/30 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Barnstable Town compares
Barnstable Town's growing season runs about 195 days, ranking 19,161 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MA, it ranks 128 of 712.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Barnstable Town can differ from the 02647 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 7a and Barnstable Town's frost date answer different questions.