FrostDateCheck

Pikeville, NC 27863 Frost Dates

When can you plant in Pikeville, NC?

Zone 8a

Around 03/28 is the usual last spring frost, about 212 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 11/12, about 231 frost-free days later.

The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Pikeville 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

About 11 weeks of growing season left in Pikeville before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.

The actual range around Pikeville's last frost

03/28 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/09 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/11 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.

How Pikeville compares

About 231 days separate Pikeville's last and first frost, putting it 10,237 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within NC, it ranks 203 of 1,078.

Learn more

local microclimates covers what one yard in Pikeville can differ from the 27863 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 8a and Pikeville's frost date answer different questions.