Kingsley, IA 51028 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Kingsley, IA, ZIP 51028
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/30, about 245 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/04, about 157 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 Kingsley, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 5a around Kingsley has about 5 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 Kingsley's last frost
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 Kingsley compares
About 157 days separate Kingsley's last and first frost, putting it 33,356 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within IA, it ranks 836 of 1,042.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in Kingsley can differ from the 51028 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 5a and Kingsley's frost date answer different questions.