North Platte, NE 69103 Frost Dates
Frost dates for North Platte, NE, ZIP 69103
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/03, roughly 248 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/10, about 158 frost-free days later.
Zone 5b (-15 to -10°F average annual minimum) comes from the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map; the frost dates above are the 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting NOAA station for North Platte, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 5b around North Platte has about 6 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.
Why 05/03 isn't a guarantee
05/03 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/19 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/15 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How North Platte compares
North Platte's growing season runs about 158 days, ranking 32,922 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within NE, it ranks 415 of 605.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around North Platte's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in North Platte can differ from the 69103 normal.