Tucumcari, NM 88433 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Tucumcari, NM?
Around 04/18 is the usual last spring frost, about 233 days away. The first fall frost typically arrives around 10/26, about 190 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Tucumcari in Zone 7a (0 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 8 weeks of growing season left in Tucumcari 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
04/18 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 04/02 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 05/01 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Tucumcari compares
At roughly 190 frost-free days, Tucumcari places 21,147 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within NM, it ranks 148 of 427.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Tucumcari can differ from the 88433 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 7a and Tucumcari's frost date answer different questions.