Rochester, IL 62563 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Rochester, IL, ZIP 62563
Around 04/14 is the usual last spring frost, about 229 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/20, about 187 frost-free days later.
Rochester sits in USDA Zone 6a (-10 to -5°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
Zone 6a around Rochester has about 8 weeks left before the first fall frost — that's the usual window to get a cold frame up if you want to keep harvesting past it.
How much risk comes with planting early here
04/14 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/01 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/29 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Rochester compares
Rochester's growing season runs about 187 days, ranking 22,365 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within IL, it ranks 722 of 1,548.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in Rochester can differ from the 62563 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 6a and Rochester's frost date answer different questions.