Tatum, NM 88262 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Tatum, NM?
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 04/19, roughly 234 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/26, about 188 frost-free days later.
Zone 7b (5 to 10°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 Tatum, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
About 8 weeks of growing season left in Tatum 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
04/19 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/03 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/02 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Tatum compares
About 188 days separate Tatum's last and first frost, putting it 22,134 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within NM, it ranks 164 of 427.
Learn more
the frost range covers how to read the range around Tatum's dates instead of trusting one. local microclimates covers what one yard in Tatum can differ from the 88262 normal.