Section, AL 35771 Frost Dates
35771, near Section, AL: the frost window
Around 04/04 is the usual last spring frost, about 219 days away. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 10/30, roughly 209 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Section in Zone 8a (10 to 15°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
Stretching the season past the first frost
Section's growing season runs out in roughly 9 weeks — a cold frame or greenhouse kit is the usual way to keep cool-weather crops going past the first frost.
Why 04/04 isn't a guarantee
04/04 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 03/18 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 04/20 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Section against the rest of the dataset
Section's growing season runs about 209 days, ranking 15,346 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within AL, it ranks 760 of 809.
Learn more
Two guides worth reading on 35771: local microclimates, on what one yard in Section can differ from the 35771 normal, and zone vs. frost date, on why Zone 8a and Section's frost date answer different questions.