Last Frost Date

Frost dates in Vermont

Across Vermont's 45 NOAA stations with a frost every year, the typical last spring frost ranges from April 28 at S Hero (110 feet above sea level) to June 1 at Sutton 2 NE (1,000 feet above sea level). The middle station's date is May 13.

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Your ZIP code stays on this computer. Your browser downloads the frost data for every ZIP code that starts with the same three digits and finds yours itself, so the ZIP you type isn't sent to anyone.

Last frost across Vermont

The frost-free season runs from 103 days at Sutton 2 NE to 174 days at S Hero.

These are typical dates: in half of springs the last frost comes later. Each place's page, and each ZIP code lookup, also gives the late-year date, after which only 1 spring in 10 has a frost. That's the safer date for tender plants.

Frost dates for Vermont's larger places

PlaceLast spring frostFirst fall frostSeasonZone
BarreMay 25September 22119 days5a
BurlingtonApril 29October 15169 days5b
RutlandMay 15September 27132 days5a

Typical (1-in-2) dates. Each place's page has the early and late years, a planting calendar and a printable planner. Zones are for the ZIP code nearest each place's center.

Hardiness zones in Vermont

Vermont's 305 ZIP codes in the USDA list fall in zones 4a to 6a: 4a (4 percent), 4b (23 percent), 5a (58 percent), 5b (15 percent) and 6a (1 percent). Compared with the 2012 map, 61 percent of them moved to a warmer half zone (13 by a full zone or more) and 39 percent stayed the same.

A hardiness zone is about the coldest night of winter, which decides which shrubs, trees and perennials survive. Frost dates are about spring and fall, which decide when to plant. You need both. Read more about what the zones mean and what changed in 2023.

Every NOAA station in Vermont

All 45 stations in Vermont with frost statistics in NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals, from A to Z. Station names are usually a town, an airport, or a distance and direction from a town. Find one near you and at a similar elevation.

StationElevation (feet)Last spring frostFirst fall frostSeason (days)
Averill1,700May 25September 22120
Barre Montpelier Airport1,130May 16September 29136
Bennington Morse St Airport830May 11October 2143
Burlington International Airport330April 29October 15169
Cavendish840May 16September 29136
Chelsea 2 NW1,440May 9October 1143
Corinth1,180May 14September 29136
Cornwall340May 5October 3151
E Haven1,000May 30September 16109
Eden 2 S1,460May 5October 8155
Enosburg Falls420May 14October 1139
Enosburg Falls 2430May 18September 30134
Essex Junction 1 N340May 2October 11160
Island Pond1,200May 19September 29129
Island Pond Airport1,190May 16September 28132
Jay Peak1,840May 14October 1138
Johnson 2 N980May 9October 1142
Montpelier 2530May 5October 9157
Morrisville 4 SSW760May 24September 27123
Morrisville Stowe State Airport730May 20September 28129
Mount Mansfield3,950May 23September 30130
N Hartland Lake570May 8October 6150
N Springfield Lake560May 9October 2146
Newport790May 14September 30138
Northfield670May 18September 28133
Peru1,700May 16October 2140
Plainfield800May 25September 22119
Pownal 1 NE1,110May 7October 8154
Rochester830May 13October 2141
Rutland620May 15September 27132
S Hero110April 28October 20174
S Lincoln1,340May 21September 25124
Saint Johnsbury700May 13October 3143
Saint Johnsbury700May 10October 3147
Salisbury 2 N420May 21September 26127
Springfield Hartness Airport580May 13October 3143
St Albans Radio380May 1October 12161
Sunderland 2900May 13September 29137
Sutton1,500May 9October 1143
Sutton 2 NE1,000June 1September 13103
Union Village Dam460May 9October 2145
Vergennes200April 30October 17168
Waitsfield 2 SE1,140May 11October 1142
Woodstock600May 13October 1141
Worcester 2 W1,360May 4October 5153

Typical (1-in-2) dates at 32°F. For the early and late years, and a planting calendar built from your own dates, look up your ZIP code.