Forest Heights, MD 20032 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Forest Heights, MD?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 03/24, about 208 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 11/18, about 241 frost-free days later.
Zone 8a (10 to 15°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 Forest Heights, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 12 weeks of growing season left in Forest Heights before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
Why 03/24 isn't a guarantee
03/24 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/07 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/06 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Forest Heights compares
About 241 days separate Forest Heights's last and first frost, putting it 8,551 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within MD, it ranks 58 of 583.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 8a and Forest Heights's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Forest Heights's dates instead of trusting one.