Lima, NY 14485 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Lima, NY?
Around 05/02 is the usual last spring frost, about 247 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/18, about 167 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Lima in Zone 6a (-10 to -5°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 7 weeks of growing season left in Lima before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
How much risk comes with planting early here
05/02 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. 05/16 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Lima compares
About 167 days separate Lima's last and first frost, putting it 30,022 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within NY, it ranks 859 of 1,951.
Learn more
the frost range covers how to read the range around Lima's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Lima can differ from the 14485 normal.