New York, NY 11256 Frost Dates
Frost dates for New York, NY, ZIP 11256
Around 03/30 is the usual last spring frost, about 214 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 11/20, about 236 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts New York in Zone 7b (5 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
Zone 7b around New York has about 12 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
03/30 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/14 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/09 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How New York compares
At roughly 236 frost-free days, New York places 9,208 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within NY, it ranks 49 of 1,951.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in New York can differ from the 11256 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 7b and New York's frost date answer different questions.