Providence, RI 02940 Frost Dates
02940, near Providence, RI: the frost window
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/11, roughly 226 days out. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 10/30, roughly 199 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Providence in Zone 7a (0 to 5°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
Stretching the season past the first frost
Providence's growing season runs out in roughly 9 weeks — a cold frame or greenhouse kit is the usual way to keep cool-weather crops going past the first frost.
How much risk comes with planting early here
04/11 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 04/01 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 04/23 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Providence against the rest of the dataset
Providence's growing season runs about 199 days, ranking 17,983 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within RI, it ranks 23 of 79.
Learn more
Two guides worth reading on 02940: local microclimates, on what one yard in Providence can differ from the 02940 normal, and zone vs. frost date, on why Zone 7a and Providence's frost date answer different questions.