Matawan, NJ 07747 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Matawan, NJ?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/17, roughly 232 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/23, about 190 frost-free days later.
Zone 7b (5 to 10°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 Matawan, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 8 weeks of growing season left in Matawan before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
Why 04/17 isn't a guarantee
04/17 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/02 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/06 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Matawan compares
At roughly 190 frost-free days, Matawan places 21,100 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within NJ, it ranks 563 of 906.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Matawan can differ from the 07747 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 7b and Matawan's frost date answer different questions.