Last and first frost dates in Buffalo

When is the last frost in Buffalo?

The last frost in Buffalo usually comes around 24 April: that is the median of 2016–2025, so in about half of those years the last night at or below 0 °C came later. Hardy crops start before it and frost-tender ones only after it: in the table below arugula can go into open ground from 3 April, while corn waits until 5 May. The first autumn frost follows around 10 November, about 200 days later: harvest or cover frost-tender crops before then.

When to sow and plant

Planting out: a week after the last frost once the soil is warm enough for the crop; frost-hardy crops three weeks before it; an unheated greenhouse three weeks earlier. Seedlings are sown so they are ready on that day. Each window starts on the Greenly calendar date and ends on the last day that still leaves the crop’s days to harvest (from its card) before the average first autumn frost, plus six weeks of picking for crops harvested over weeks (tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, cucumbers, courgettes, pumpkins, watermelons, beans) — our rule; earlier in the window is safer.

What planting zone is Buffalo?

The official USDA map (2023, 1991–2020 data) puts the centre of Buffalo (ZIP 14202) in zone 6b. Zone 6b stands for an average coldest night of -5 to 0 °F (-20.6 to -17.8 °C), so perennials hardy to zone 6b or a colder zone should come through a typical winter here.

Check the official USDA map for Buffalo: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.

When the soil warms up in Buffalo

The day the top 7 cm of soil first averages each temperature over a week, median of 2016–2025 (ERA5 via Open-Meteo). The soil reaches 10 °C 1 day before the last spring frost and 15 °C 26 days after it.

Frost dates near Buffalo

Of the nearest cities on our list, the last spring frost ends earliest in Erie (10 April) and latest in Kitchener (30 April).

Seeds, seedlings and markets in Buffalo

Within 15 km of Buffalo OpenStreetMap lists 10 garden centres and 3 markets (collected 20 October 2026). The nearest garden centre to the city centre is Luds Landscaping, 2 km away.

• Luds Landscaping — garden centre
  14th Street 341, 14213 Buffalo · 2 km
• Elmwood Village Farmers Market — market
  May–Nov Sat 08:00–13:00 · 4 km · elmwoodmarket.org
• Urban Roots Garden Center — garden centre
  Rhode Island Street 428, 14213 Buffalo · 3 km
• Farmers & Artisans — market
  Main Street 4557, 14226 Amherst · Mon–Fri 08:00–18:00; Sat 08:00–17:00 · 11 km · farmersandartisans.com
• Daddy's Plants — garden centre
  Niagara Street 1250, 14213 Buffalo · 4 km · daddysplants.com
• Elbers Landscape Service — garden centre
  Main Street 2918, 14214 Buffalo · 7 km · elberslandscape.com

• Where to buy seeds and seedlings in Buffalo
• Selling your own harvest in the United States

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Weather in Buffalo by month

Average weather in Buffalo over 2016–2025: the warmest month is July. Months that average 20 °C or more by day: June–September (22.9–26.7 °C). Nights average below 0 °C in December–March (-5.5–-1.7 °C). About 1055 mm of rain falls in a year, on 149 days; April is the wettest month (104 mm) and September the driest (73 mm).

Average of the daily highs and lows, rain per month and days with at least 1 mm (ERA5 via Open-Meteo, the same grid cell as the frost dates).

Planted in autumn

From a month before the first autumn frost, so the roots grow before winter, to the late-planting limit on each crop’s page (about two weeks before the ground freezes, by ten years of weather).