Waterville, ME 04942 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Waterville, ME, ZIP 04942
Around 05/11 is the usual last spring frost, about 256 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/01, about 141 frost-free days later.
Zone 5a (-20 to -15°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 Waterville, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 5a around Waterville has about 5 weeks left before the first fall frost — that's the usual window to get a cold frame up if you want to keep harvesting past it.
How much risk comes with planting early here
05/11 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/30 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/25 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Waterville compares
Waterville's growing season runs about 141 days, ranking 36,873 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within ME, it ranks 356 of 456.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Waterville's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Waterville can differ from the 04942 normal.