Charleston, MS 38953 Frost Dates
Charleston, MS: when does the frost end?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 03/28, roughly 212 days out. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 11/04, roughly 222 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Charleston 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 10 weeks until Charleston's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.
How much risk comes with planting early here
03/28 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 03/08 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 04/14 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Charleston against the rest of the dataset
Charleston's growing season runs about 222 days, ranking 12,278 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MS, it ranks 432 of 523.
Learn more
Before leaning on 38953's figures: zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 8a and Charleston's frost date answer different questions, while the frost range explains how to read the range around Charleston's dates instead of trusting one.