Raleigh, NC 27635 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Raleigh, NC, ZIP 27635
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 03/28, roughly 212 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 11/08, about 229 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Raleigh in Zone 8a (10 to 15°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
Zone 8a around Raleigh has about 10 weeks left before the first fall frost — that's the usual window to get a cold frame up if you want to keep harvesting past it.
How much risk comes with planting early here
03/28 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/08 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/12 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Raleigh compares
About 229 days separate Raleigh's last and first frost, putting it 10,518 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within NC, it ranks 259 of 1,078.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Raleigh's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Raleigh can differ from the 27635 normal.