Dows, IA 50071 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Dows, IA, ZIP 50071
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/30, about 245 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/10, about 162 frost-free days later.
Zone 5a (-20 to -15°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 Dows, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 5a around Dows has about 6 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.
How much risk comes with planting early here
04/30 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/17 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/12 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Dows compares
About 162 days separate Dows's last and first frost, putting it 31,840 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within IA, it ranks 721 of 1,042.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Dows's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Dows can differ from the 50071 normal.