New Paltz, NY 12525 Frost Dates
Frost dates for New Paltz, NY, ZIP 12525
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/21, roughly 236 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/27, about 188 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts New Paltz in Zone 6b (-5 to 0°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 6b around New Paltz has about 9 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 04/21 isn't a guarantee
04/21 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/06 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/05 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How New Paltz compares
About 188 days separate New Paltz's last and first frost, putting it 21,947 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within NY, it ranks 421 of 1,951.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in New Paltz can differ from the 12525 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 6b and New Paltz's frost date answer different questions.