NOAA station USC00101671 · Idaho
Frost Dates for Chilly Barton Flat, ID
NOAA weather station Chilly Barton Flat (USC00101671), Idaho · elevation 6260 ft (1908 m) · hardiness zone 5a*
- Lower-risk planting dateafter June 30only 1 spring in 10 still has a frost later
- Typical last frostJune 1450% chance of a frost after it
- Typical first fall frostSeptember 850% chance of a frost before it
- Frost-free season86 daystypical year, 32°F
- Hardiness zone5acalculated*
The year at a glance
Frost dates (32°F)
| Chance | Last frost in spring after | First frost in fall before |
|---|---|---|
| 10% (unlikely) | June 30 | August 26 |
| 50% (typical) | June 14 | September 8 |
| 90% (likely) | May 27 | September 22 |
- Frost-free season (32°F, 50% chance)
- 86 days
- Hard frost (28°F), last in spring, 50% chance after
- May 24
- Hard frost (28°F), first in fall, 50% chance before
- September 20
The last 15 years (2006–2020 normals)
Typical last frost June 13 (1 day earlier than the 30-year normal), typical first fall frost September 9 (1 day later). Frost-free season 89 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
What actually happened in recent years
| Year | Last spring frost | First fall frost |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | June 11 | September 4 |
| 2022 | June 15 | incomplete record |
| 2023 | June 22 | incomplete record |
| 2024 | June 20 | August 29 |
| 2025 | June 23 | September 23 |
| 2026 | June 11 | season not over yet |
What these dates mean
June 30 is the cautious spring date for light frost, giving a gardener a 10% chance that any frost will occur later and allowing the safe setting out of tender crops. The 50% date is June 14, which means a 50% chance of a frost later than that day. Planting before May 27 carries a 90% chance of frost, so early sowing is a gamble.
In the autumn, August 26 serves as the cautious fall date, with only a 10% chance that a frost has arrived earlier, so it marks the latest reliable time to finish harvesting tender crops. The 50% date is September 8, indicating a 50% chance of a frost earlier than that day. The hard-frost 50% dates are May 24 in spring and September 20 in fall; the lower temperature of 28 °F can damage plants more severely than 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 June 30" 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 August 26" 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
- Mackay Lost River Ranger Station, ID 11 mi (18 km)
- Idaho Falls 46 W, ID 54 mi (87 km)
- Richfield, ID 66 mi (106 km)
- Shoshone, ID 78 mi (125 km)
- Dubois, ID 83 mi (133 km)
Sources
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, station USC00101671
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals
- PRISM Group, Oregon State University — 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone GIS datasets
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 2006–2020 (15-year normals), station USC00101671
- NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network – Daily (GHCN-Daily), observed daily minimum temperature, retrieved 2026-10-08
* Hardiness zone 5a: zone derived from PRISM 2023 grid at the station location (not the official USDA map). Source data: PRISM Group, Oregon State University.
Station coordinates: 43.9778, -113.8292.