Maricopa, CA 93222 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Maricopa, CA, ZIP 93222
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 01/24, roughly 149 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 12/17, about 330 frost-free days later.
Zone 8b (15 to 20°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 Maricopa, not a forecast for this year.
What to do before the first frost
Zone 8b around Maricopa has about 16 weeks left before the first fall frost — that's the usual window to get a cold frame up if you want to keep harvesting past it.
Why 01/24 isn't a guarantee
01/24 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/12 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 12/25 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Maricopa compares
Maricopa's growing season runs about 330 days, ranking 3,059 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within CA, it ranks 1,316 of 2,555.
Learn more
local microclimates explains what one yard in Maricopa can differ from the 93222 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 8b and Maricopa's frost date answer different questions.