Ledyard, IA 50556 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Ledyard, IA, ZIP 50556
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/25, about 240 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/14, about 171 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 Ledyard, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 5a around Ledyard 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.
How much risk comes with planting early here
04/25 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/12 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 Ledyard compares
Ledyard's growing season runs about 171 days, ranking 28,846 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within IA, it ranks 293 of 1,042.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 5a and Ledyard's frost date answer different questions, and the frost range explains how to read the range around Ledyard's dates instead of trusting one.