Bowler, WI 54978 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Bowler, WI?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/09, about 254 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/02, about 144 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 Bowler, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 5 weeks of growing season left in Bowler before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Bowler's last frost
05/09 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/26 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/24 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Bowler compares
About 144 days separate Bowler's last and first frost, putting it 36,458 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within WI, it ranks 683 of 860.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5a and Bowler's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Bowler's dates instead of trusting one.