Oskaloosa, IA 52577 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Oskaloosa, IA?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/21, roughly 236 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/16, about 176 frost-free days later.
Oskaloosa sits in USDA Zone 5b (-15 to -10°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 7 weeks of growing season left in Oskaloosa before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Oskaloosa's last frost
04/21 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. 05/04 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Oskaloosa compares
Oskaloosa's growing season runs about 176 days, ranking 26,404 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within IA, it ranks 137 of 1,042.
Learn more
the frost range covers how to read the range around Oskaloosa's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Oskaloosa can differ from the 52577 normal.