Waupaca, WI 54946 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Waupaca, WI?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/08, about 253 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/06, about 151 frost-free days later.
Waupaca 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 6 weeks of growing season left in Waupaca 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 04/24 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/21 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Waupaca compares
At roughly 151 frost-free days, Waupaca places 35,005 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within WI, it ranks 530 of 860.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Waupaca can differ from the 54946 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5a and Waupaca's frost date answer different questions.