Lake Placid, NY 12872 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Lake Placid, NY, ZIP 12872
Around 05/21 is the usual last spring frost, about 266 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 09/24, about 123 frost-free days later.
Lake Placid sits in USDA Zone 5a (-20 to -15°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 5a around Lake Placid has about 4 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
05/21 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 05/07 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 06/05 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Lake Placid compares
Lake Placid's growing season runs about 123 days, ranking 38,890 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within NY, it ranks 1,937 of 1,951.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Lake Placid's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Lake Placid can differ from the 12872 normal.