Ocala, FL 34489 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Ocala, FL?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 03/01, roughly 185 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 12/07, about 284 frost-free days later.
Zone 9a (20 to 25°F average annual minimum) comes from the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map; the frost dates above are the 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting NOAA station for Ocala, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 14 weeks of growing season left in Ocala before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Ocala's last frost
03/01 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 01/29 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 03/22 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Ocala compares
Ocala's growing season runs about 284 days, ranking 4,670 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within FL, it ranks 1,370 of 1,609.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 9a and Ocala's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Ocala's dates instead of trusting one.