Orange, VA 22542 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Orange, VA?
Around 04/07 is the usual last spring frost, about 222 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/30, about 204 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Orange in Zone 7a (0 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 9 weeks of growing season left in Orange 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
04/07 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/24 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/26 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Orange compares
About 204 days separate Orange's last and first frost, putting it 16,573 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within VA, it ranks 528 of 1,178.
Learn more
the frost range covers how to read the range around Orange's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Orange can differ from the 22542 normal.