Brodhead, WI 53520 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Brodhead, WI?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/29, about 244 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/12, about 165 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 Brodhead, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 6 weeks of growing season left in Brodhead before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
How much risk comes with planting early here
04/29 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/14 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/14 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Brodhead compares
About 165 days separate Brodhead's last and first frost, putting it 30,575 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within WI, it ranks 192 of 860.
Learn more
the frost range covers how to read the range around Brodhead's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Brodhead can differ from the 53520 normal.