Española, NM 87567 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Española, NM?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 05/11, about 256 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/06, about 149 frost-free days later.
Zone 7a (0 to 5°F average annual minimum) comes from the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map; the frost dates above are the 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting NOAA station for Española, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 6 weeks of growing season left in Española 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
05/11 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/28 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/26 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Española compares
At roughly 149 frost-free days, Española places 35,504 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within NM, it ranks 286 of 427.
Learn more
zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 7a and Española's frost date answer different questions. the frost range covers how to read the range around Española's dates instead of trusting one.