Fairwater, WI 53931 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Fairwater, WI?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/08, about 253 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/02, about 144 frost-free days later.
Fairwater 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 Fairwater before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
Why 05/08 isn't a guarantee
05/08 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/25 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/23 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Fairwater compares
At roughly 144 frost-free days, Fairwater places 36,456 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within WI, it ranks 682 of 860.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Fairwater can differ from the 53931 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5a and Fairwater's frost date answer different questions.