Bakersfield, CA 93301 Frost Dates
Frost dates for Bakersfield, CA, ZIP 93301
Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 01/17, roughly 142 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 12/15, about 334 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Bakersfield in Zone 9b (25 to 30°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
Zone 9b around Bakersfield 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 01/17 isn't a guarantee
01/17 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 02/18 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 12/23 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Bakersfield compares
At roughly 334 frost-free days, Bakersfield places 2,753 of 40,283 ZIP codes in this dataset. Within CA, it ranks 1,244 of 2,555.
Learn more
the frost range explains how to read the range around Bakersfield's dates instead of trusting one, and local microclimates explains what one yard in Bakersfield can differ from the 93301 normal.