FrostDateCheck

Berkeley, CA 94703 Frost Dates

Frost dates for Berkeley, CA, ZIP 94703

Zone 10a

Typically, the last spring freeze lands around 01/03, roughly 128 days out. The first fall frost typically arrives around 01/01, about 365 frost-free days later.

Berkeley sits in USDA Zone 10a (30 to 35°F average annual minimum). The dates above are NOAA's 1991-2020 normal at the nearest reporting station, a 30-year average, not a forecast.

What to do before the first frost

Zone 10a around Berkeley has about 18 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 01/03 isn't a guarantee

01/03 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 02/14 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 12/14 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.

How Berkeley compares

About 365 days separate Berkeley's last and first frost, putting it 433 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within CA, it ranks 171 of 2,555.

Learn more

local microclimates explains what one yard in Berkeley can differ from the 94703 normal, and zone vs. frost date explains why Zone 10a and Berkeley's frost date answer different questions.