Sonora, CA 95372 Frost Dates
When can you plant in Sonora, CA?
The last spring frost here typically falls around 04/09, about 224 days from today. The first fall frost typically arrives around 11/09, about 213 frost-free days later.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Sonora in Zone 8b (15 to 20°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 10 weeks of growing season left in Sonora before the first fall frost — a cold frame or row cover can stretch harvest weeks past that date.
The actual range around Sonora's last frost
04/09 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Plant by 03/15 and you're betting against frost in roughly 9 years out of 10. 04/30 is the safer bet, historically only a 1-in-10 chance of frost that late.
How Sonora compares
About 213 days separate Sonora's last and first frost, putting it 14,496 of 40,283 ZIP codes nationally. Within CA, it ranks 2,200 of 2,555.
Learn more
local microclimates covers what one yard in Sonora can differ from the 95372 normal. zone vs. frost date covers why Zone 8b and Sonora's frost date answer different questions.