Fountain, CO 80817 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Fountain, CO?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 05/03, roughly 248 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/08, about 158 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Fountain in Zone 6a (-10 to -5°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 6 weeks of growing season left in Fountain 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
05/03 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/22 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 Fountain compares
At roughly 158 frost-free days, Fountain places 32,902 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within CO, it ranks 162 of 624.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Fountain can differ from the 80817 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 6a and Fountain's frost date answer different questions.