FrostDateCheck

Tampa, FL 33694 Frost Dates

When can you plant in Tampa, FL?

Zone 9b

Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 01/20, roughly 145 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 01/12, about 365 frost-free days later.

Tampa sits in USDA Zone 9b (25 to 30°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.

What to do before the first frost

About 20 weeks of growing season left in Tampa 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

01/20 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 02/10 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 12/27 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.

How Tampa compares

Tampa's growing season runs about 365 days, ranking 103 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within FL, it ranks 65 of 1,609.

Learn more

the frost range covers how to read the range around Tampa's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Tampa can differ from the 33694 normal.