Cookeville, TN 38503 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Cookeville, TN?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/12, about 227 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/25, about 195 frost-free days later.
Zone 7a (0 to 5°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 Cookeville, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 8 weeks of growing season left in Cookeville 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
04/12 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/28 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/30 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Cookeville compares
About 195 days separate Cookeville's last and first frost, putting it 19,189 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within TN, it ranks 571 of 770.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Cookeville can differ from the 38503 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 7a and Cookeville's frost date answer different questions.