Red Lodge, MT 59070 Frost Dates
Red Lodge, MT: when does the frost end?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/29, about 274 days from today. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 09/15, roughly 107 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Red Lodge 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 3 weeks until Red Lodge's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.
How much risk comes with planting early here
05/29 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 05/14 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 06/17 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Red Lodge against the rest of the dataset
Red Lodge's growing season runs about 107 days, ranking 39,563 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within MT, it ranks 284 of 392.
Learn more
Before leaning on 59070's figures: local microclimates explains what one yard in Red Lodge can differ from the 59070 normal, while zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 5a and Red Lodge's frost date answer different questions.