Derby Center, VT 05872 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Derby Center, VT?
Around 05/19 is the usual last spring frost, about 264 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 09/29, about 129 frost-free days later.
Zone 4a (-30 to -25°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 Derby Center, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 5 weeks of growing season left in Derby Center 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
05/19 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 05/03 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 06/03 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Derby Center compares
About 129 days separate Derby Center's last and first frost, putting it 38,478 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within VT, it ranks 292 of 330.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Derby Center can differ from the 05872 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 4a and Derby Center's frost date answer different questions.