Dowell, IL 62927 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Dowell, IL?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/06, roughly 221 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/22, about 199 frost-free days later.
Dowell sits in USDA Zone 7a (0 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
About 8 weeks of growing season left in Dowell before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Dowell's last frost
04/06 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/23 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/22 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Dowell compares
About 199 days separate Dowell's last and first frost, putting it 18,201 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within IL, it ranks 298 of 1,548.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Dowell can differ from the 62927 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 7a and Dowell's frost date answer different questions.