FrostDateCheck

Gretna, LA 70122 Frost Dates

When can you plant in Gretna, LA?

Zone 9b

Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 01/22, roughly 147 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 01/05, about 348 frost-free days later.

Gretna sits in USDA Zone 9b (25 to 30°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 19 weeks of growing season left in Gretna before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.

How much risk comes with planting early here

01/22 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 02/23 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 12/28 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.

How Gretna compares

Gretna's growing season runs about 348 days, ranking 2,372 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within LA, it ranks 9 of 710.

Learn more

local microclimates covers what one yard in Gretna can differ from the 70122 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 9b and Gretna's frost date answer different questions.