Spencer, NY 14883 Frost Dates
Spencer, NY: when does the frost end?
Around 05/12 is the usual last spring frost, about 257 days away. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 10/03, roughly 143 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Spencer in Zone 6a (-10 to -5°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
Stretching the season past the first frost
With roughly 5 weeks until Spencer's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.
Why 05/12 isn't a guarantee
05/12 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 04/28 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 05/27 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Spencer against the rest of the dataset
Spencer's growing season runs about 143 days, ranking 36,579 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within NY, it ranks 1,748 of 1,951.
Learn more
Before leaning on 14883's figures: local microclimates explains what one yard in Spencer can differ from the 14883 normal, while zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 6a and Spencer's frost date answer different questions.