Dover, NH 03861 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Dover, NH?
Around 05/07 is the usual last spring frost, about 252 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/04, about 150 frost-free days later.
Dover 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
About 5 weeks of growing season left in Dover 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
05/07 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/25 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/19 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Dover compares
At roughly 150 frost-free days, Dover places 35,244 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within NH, it ranks 120 of 260.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 6a and Dover's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Dover's dates instead of trusting one.