Frost dates in Gainesville, Florida

NOAA 1991–2020 normals for a 32 °F freeze. Low spots and the edge of town run colder than downtown.

Short answer

The average last spring frost in Gainesville is March 3, and the average first fall frost is December 2, from NOAA's Gainesville Rgnl Airport station, 4 miles from the middle of Gainesville. 1 year in 10 the last frost comes after March 23, and the first one by November 12. That leaves about 274 frost-free days. Gainesville is in USDA planting zone 9a.

Weather stations around Gainesville

The first row is the date most people in Gainesville go by. The others show how far the dates move across the area.

Station	Last spring frost	First fall frost	Frost-free
Gainesville Rgnl Airport 4 mi away, 123 ft	March 3 1 in 10 after March 23	December 2 1 in 10 by November 12	274 days
Gainesville 11 WNW 9 mi away, 95 ft	March 4 1 in 10 after March 26	December 4 1 in 10 by November 10	275 days
High Springs 18 mi away, 65 ft	March 13 1 in 10 after April 2	November 22 1 in 10 by November 4	254 days
Starke 23 mi away, 150 ft	February 8 1 in 10 after March 8	December 24 1 in 10 by November 29	319 days
Orange Springs 2SSW 27 mi away, 50 ft	March 1 1 in 10 after March 22	December 7 1 in 10 by November 16	281 days

Distances are from the middle of Gainesville as the Census Bureau maps it. The average date is NOAA's 50% date: half of years have a later last frost, or an earlier first one. Plan by the 1-in-10 date if a freeze would cost you plants. The planting zone is the USDA 2023 zone for ZIP code 32605, at the middle of the city.

Your exact ZIP code

Gainesville covers a lot of ground. For the station nearest your own street, and its planting zone, type your ZIP code.

How these dates work

Frost dates come from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 Climate Normals, which work out from each weather station's daily lows how likely the last spring freeze and the first fall freeze (32 °F) are by each date. We use the station nearest the middle of your ZIP code and show its height and distance, since a station on a hill or by a lake can differ from your yard.

The average date is the 50% date: half of years have a freeze after the spring date or before the fall one. The 1-in-10 dates are NOAA's 10% dates, the ones to plan by if a late freeze would cost you plants. Within one yard, cold air pools in low spots while walls and paving hold heat, so some corners freeze before others.

More frost dates

All of Florida, station by station.

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