Sanford, ME 04001 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Sanford, ME?
Around 05/16 is the usual last spring frost, about 261 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 09/30, about 136 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Sanford in Zone 5b (-15 to -10°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
What to do before the first frost
About 5 weeks of growing season left in Sanford before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Sanford's last frost
05/16 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 05/02 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/29 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Sanford compares
At roughly 136 frost-free days, Sanford places 37,630 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within ME, it ranks 392 of 456.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5b and Sanford's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Sanford's dates instead of trusting one.