Norfolk, VA 23501 Frost Dates
Norfolk, VA: when does the frost end?
Around 03/17 is the usual last spring frost, about 201 days away. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 11/23, roughly 252 days after the last spring frost.
Norfolk sits in USDA Zone 8b (15 to 20°F average annual minimum). The dates above are NOAA's 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting station, a 30-year average, not a forecast.
Stretching the season past the first frost
With roughly 12 weeks until Norfolk's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.
Why 03/17 isn't a guarantee
03/17 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 02/27 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 03/31 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Norfolk against the rest of the dataset
Norfolk's growing season runs about 252 days, ranking 7,198 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within VA, it ranks 16 of 1,178.
Learn more
Before leaning on 23501's figures: the frost range explains how to read the range around Norfolk's dates instead of trusting one, while local microclimates explains what one yard in Norfolk can differ from the 23501 normal.