Gowanda, NY 14041 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Gowanda, NY, ZIP 14041
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/17, roughly 262 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/01, about 136 frost-free days later.
Zone 6a (-10 to -5°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 Gowanda, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 6a around Gowanda has about 5 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 05/17 isn't a guarantee
05/17 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 05/01 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/31 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Gowanda compares
Gowanda's growing season runs about 136 days, ranking 37,688 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within NY, it ranks 1,823 of 1,951.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 6a and Gowanda's frost date answer different questions, and the frost range explains how to read the range around Gowanda's dates instead of trusting one.