McAlester, OK 74501 Frost Dates
McAlester, OK: when does the frost end?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 03/31, about 215 days from today. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 11/03, roughly 216 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts McAlester in Zone 7b (5 to 10°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
Stretching the season past the first frost
With roughly 10 weeks until McAlester's first fall frost, a row cover or cold frame is what stretches the last few weeks of harvest here.
Why 03/31 isn't a guarantee
03/31 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 03/11 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 04/18 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
McAlester against the rest of the dataset
McAlester's growing season runs about 216 days, ranking 13,745 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within OK, it ranks 310 of 764.
Learn more
Before leaning on 74501's figures: the frost range explains how to read the range around McAlester's dates instead of trusting one, while local microclimates explains what one yard in McAlester can differ from the 74501 normal.