Houston, TX 77208 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Houston, TX?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 02/13, roughly 169 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 12/09, about 300 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Houston 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 Houston before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Houston's last frost
02/13 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 01/12 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 03/12 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Houston compares
Houston's growing season runs about 300 days, ranking 3,999 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within TX, it ranks 331 of 2,558.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Houston can differ from the 77208 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 9b and Houston's frost date answer different questions.