Corning, IA 50841 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Corning, IA, ZIP 50841
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/27, roughly 242 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/12, about 168 frost-free days later.
Zone 5b (-15 to -10°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 Corning, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 5b around Corning 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.
Why 04/27 isn't a guarantee
04/27 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/13 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/11 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Corning compares
About 168 days separate Corning's last and first frost, putting it 29,732 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within IA, it ranks 374 of 1,042.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Corning's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Corning can differ from the 50841 normal.