Carthage, MS 39171 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Carthage, MS, ZIP 39171
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 03/19, roughly 203 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 11/07, about 233 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Carthage in Zone 8b (15 to 20°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 8b around Carthage has about 10 weeks left before the first fall frost — that's the usual window to get a cold frame up if you want to keep harvesting past it.
Why 03/19 isn't a guarantee
03/19 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 02/28 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/07 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Carthage compares
Carthage's growing season runs about 233 days, ranking 9,897 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MS, it ranks 341 of 523.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 8b and Carthage's frost date answer different questions, and the frost range explains how to read the range around Carthage's dates instead of trusting one.