Otter Lake, MI 48435 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Otter Lake, MI, ZIP 48435
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/04, roughly 249 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/13, about 161 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Otter Lake in Zone 6a (-10 to -5°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 6a around Otter Lake has about 7 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.
The actual range around Otter Lake's last frost
05/04 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/21 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/21 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Otter Lake compares
Otter Lake's growing season runs about 161 days, ranking 32,154 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MI, it ranks 609 of 1,153.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in Otter Lake can differ from the 48435 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 6a and Otter Lake's frost date answer different questions.