Hartford, CT 06160 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Hartford, CT, ZIP 06160
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/17, roughly 232 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/26, about 191 frost-free days later.
Hartford sits in USDA Zone 6b (-5 to 0°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
Zone 6b around Hartford has about 8 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.
Why 04/17 isn't a guarantee
04/17 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/01 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/01 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Hartford compares
Hartford's growing season runs about 191 days, ranking 20,672 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within CT, it ranks 184 of 391.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in Hartford can differ from the 06160 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 6b and Hartford's frost date answer different questions.