Memphis, TN 38173 Frost Dates
Memphis, TN: when does the frost end?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 03/16, roughly 200 days out. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 11/16, roughly 244 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Memphis 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
With roughly 11 weeks until Memphis's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.
Why 03/16 isn't a guarantee
03/16 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 02/27 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 04/04 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Memphis against the rest of the dataset
At roughly 244 frost-free days, Memphis places 8,132 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within TN, it ranks 38 of 770.
Learn more
Before leaning on 38173's figures: local microclimates explains what one yard in Memphis can differ from the 38173 normal, while zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 8a and Memphis's frost date answer different questions.