Potsdam, NY 13676 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Potsdam, NY?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/05, about 250 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/08, about 156 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Potsdam in Zone 4b (-25 to -20°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
About 6 weeks of growing season left in Potsdam before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Potsdam's last frost
05/05 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/22 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/21 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Potsdam compares
About 156 days separate Potsdam's last and first frost, putting it 33,561 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within NY, it ranks 1,271 of 1,951.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 4b and Potsdam's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Potsdam's dates instead of trusting one.