Ponca, NE 68770 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Ponca, NE?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/03, roughly 248 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/03, about 153 frost-free days later.
Ponca sits in USDA Zone 5a (-20 to -15°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 5 weeks of growing season left in Ponca before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Ponca's last frost
05/03 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/20 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/16 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Ponca compares
Ponca's growing season runs about 153 days, ranking 34,571 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within NE, it ranks 490 of 605.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 5a and Ponca's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Ponca's dates instead of trusting one.