FrostDateCheck

Minneapolis, MN 55405 Frost Dates

Minneapolis, MN: when does the frost end?

Zone 5a

Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/23, roughly 238 days out. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 10/16, roughly 175 days after the last spring frost.

The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Minneapolis in Zone 5a (-20 to -15°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.

Stretching the season past the first frost

With roughly 7 weeks until Minneapolis's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.

Why 04/23 isn't a guarantee

04/23 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 04/10 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 05/07 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.

Minneapolis against the rest of the dataset

At roughly 175 frost-free days, Minneapolis places 26,694 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within MN, it ranks 48 of 943.

Learn more

Before leaning on 55405's figures: local microclimates explains what one yard in Minneapolis can differ from the 55405 normal, while zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 5a and Minneapolis's frost date answer different questions.