FrostDateCheck

Ocheyedan, IA 51354 Frost Dates

When can you plant in Ocheyedan, IA?

Zone 5a

The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/05, about 250 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/03, about 152 frost-free days later.

Ocheyedan sits in USDA Zone 5a (-20 to -15°F average annual minimum). The dates above are NOAA's 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting station, a 30-year average, not a forecast.

What to do before the first frost

About 5 weeks of growing season left in Ocheyedan before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.

The actual range around Ocheyedan's last frost

05/05 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/22 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/17 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.

How Ocheyedan compares

Ocheyedan's growing season runs about 152 days, ranking 34,874 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within IA, it ranks 956 of 1,042.

Learn more

zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5a and Ocheyedan's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Ocheyedan's dates instead of trusting one.