U.S. Frost Dates by Weather Station

NOAA station USC00030458 · Arkansas

Frost Dates near Batesville, AR

NOAA weather station Batesville Lvstk (USC00030458), Arkansas · elevation 571 ft (174 m) · hardiness zone 7b*

Batesville is the nearest town to the station (9.6 mi away) in GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). The dates below are measured at the station, not in the town itself.

  • Lower-risk planting dateafter April 24only 1 spring in 10 still has a frost later
  • Typical last frostApril 850% chance of a frost after it
  • Typical first fall frostOctober 2650% chance of a frost before it
  • Frost-free season201 daystypical year, 32°F
  • Hardiness zone7bcalculated*

The year at a glance

Frost season near Batesville, ARSpring: a frost after March 23 in 9 years out of 10, after April 8 in half of the years, after April 24 in 1 year out of 10. Fall: the first frost comes before October 13 in 1 year out of 10, before October 26 in half of the years, before November 8 in 9 years out of 10. Typical frost-free season: 201 days.JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLast frost ~Apr 8First frost ~Oct 26Frost season near Batesville, ARSpring: a frost after March 23 in 9 years out of 10, after April 8 in half of the years, after April 24 in 1 year out of 10. Fall: the first frost comes before October 13 in 1 year out of 10, before October 26 in half of the years, before November 8 in 9 years out of 10. Typical frost-free season: 201 days.JFMAMJJASONDLast frost ~Apr 8First frost ~Oct 26
frost likely chance fading 90% → 10% frost-free in a typical yearThe year at a glance. Blue: frost is likely; the gradient fades as the chance drops from 90% to 10%; green: the frost-free part of a typical year.

Frost dates (32°F)

Probability of frost, based on 30 years of NOAA records (1991–2020 normals)
ChanceLast frost in spring afterFirst frost in fall before
10% (unlikely)April 24October 13
50% (typical)April 8October 26
90% (likely)March 23November 8
Frost-free season (32°F, 50% chance)
201 days
Hard frost (28°F), last in spring, 50% chance after
March 27
Hard frost (28°F), first in fall, 50% chance before
November 4

The last 15 years (2006–2020 normals)

Typical last frost April 3 (5 days earlier than the 30-year normal), typical first fall frost October 27 (1 day later). Frost-free season 208 days.

A shorter, more recent NOAA period. The 30-year normals above remain the main reference: 15 years carry more year-to-year noise.

Add these dates to your calendar Yearly reminders for the typical last frost, the lower-risk planting date and the typical first fall frost (.ics).

How the chance of frost changes with the date

Spring near Batesville: chance of a frost after this dateSpring, chance of a frost after the date: 10% April 24, 20% April 19, 30% April 14, 40% April 11, 50% April 8, 60% April 5, 70% April 2, 80% March 29, 90% March 23. Observed last spring frost in recent years: 2021 April 22, 2022 April 14, 2023 April 24, 2024 March 27, 2025 March 22, 2026 March 18.Spring: last frostChance of a frost after this date10%50%90%Apr 1May 1Apr 24Apr 8Mar 232021: April 222022: April 142023: April 242024: March 272025: March 222026: March 18Fall near Batesville: chance of a frost before this dateFall, chance of a frost before the date: 10% October 13, 20% October 19, 30% October 21, 40% October 23, 50% October 26, 60% October 28, 70% October 31, 80% November 2, 90% November 8. Observed first fall frost in recent years: 2021 November 4, 2022 October 18, 2024 October 16.Fall: first frostChance of a frost before this date10%50%90%Oct 1Nov 1Oct 13Oct 26Nov 82021: November 42022: October 182024: October 16
Two charts, because spring and fall answer different questions: in spring, the chance that a frost still comes after a date; in fall, the chance that the first frost has already come before it. NOAA publishes these odds from 10% to 90%, so the lines stop there. ◆ marks the actual date in each recent year.

What actually happened in recent years

Observed dates of the last spring and first fall frost (32°F) at this station; ◆ marks them on the charts above
YearLast spring frostFirst fall frost
2021April 22November 4
2022April 14October 18
2023April 24incomplete record
2024March 27October 16
2025March 22incomplete record
2026March 18season not over yet

What these dates mean

April 24 is the cautious spring date for the Batesville area; with only a 10% chance of a light frost after that day, it lets a gardener set out tender crops with minimal risk. The equivalent cautious date in fall is October 13, when there is just a 10% chance that a light frost has arrived earlier, marking a safe point to finish harvesting tender crops.

The 50% dates represent the point at which a light frost is equally likely to occur later (spring) or earlier (fall). In this location the spring median is April 8 and the fall median is October 26. The hard-frost median dates are March 27 in spring and November 4 in fall; these are the dates at which a 28 °F frost has even odds of happening.

A hard frost matters more because temperatures at 28 °F can damage or kill plants that survive a light frost at 32 °F.

How to read the probabilities

The dates are probabilities from 30 years of weather, not a forecast for this year.

  • Spring: "10% after April 24" means that in about one spring out of ten a frost still happens after that date. The 90% date is the earliest: a frost after it happens in most years.
  • Fall: "10% before October 13" means that in about one fall out of ten the first frost arrives before that date.
  • 50% is the typical date: half of the years are earlier, half are later.
  • A light frost (32°F) damages tender plants; a hard frost (28°F) also stops most hardy vegetables.

Nearby weather stations

Map of weather stations near Batesville, ARNumbered nearest stations: 1 — near Heber Springs, AR — 24 mi; 2 — Calico Rock, AR — 28 mi; 3 — Newport, AR — 33 mi; 4 — Searcy, AR — 39 mi; 5 — Beedeville, AR — 49 mi.AR25 mi · 40 km1. near Heber Springs, AR — 24 mi12. Calico Rock, AR — 28 mi23. Newport, AR — 33 mi34. Searcy, AR — 39 mi45. Beedeville, AR — 49 mi5
  1. near Heber Springs, AR 24 mi (39 km)
  2. Calico Rock, AR 28 mi (45 km)
  3. Newport, AR 33 mi (53 km)
  4. Searcy, AR 39 mi (63 km)
  5. Beedeville, AR 49 mi (78 km)

Sources

* Hardiness zone 7b: zone derived from PRISM 2023 grid at the station location (not the official USDA map). Source data: PRISM Group, Oregon State University.

Station coordinates: 35.8306, -91.7944.