Ankeny, IA 50393 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Ankeny, IA?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/23, about 238 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/15, about 173 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Ankeny in Zone 5b (-15 to -10°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
About 7 weeks of growing season left in Ankeny before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Ankeny's last frost
04/23 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/08 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/06 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Ankeny compares
About 173 days separate Ankeny's last and first frost, putting it 27,720 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within IA, it ranks 246 of 1,042.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Ankeny can differ from the 50393 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5b and Ankeny's frost date answer different questions.