Iowa, LA 70646 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Iowa, LA?
Around 02/10 is the usual last spring frost, about 166 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 12/11, about 307 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Iowa in Zone 9b (25 to 30°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
What to do before the first frost
About 15 weeks of growing season left in Iowa before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
Why 02/10 isn't a guarantee
02/10 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 01/10 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 03/08 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Iowa compares
About 307 days separate Iowa's last and first frost, putting it 3,681 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within LA, it ranks 149 of 710.
Learn more
the frost range covers how to read the range around Iowa's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Iowa can differ from the 70646 normal.