Last and first frost dates in Dover

When is the last frost in Dover?

The last frost in Dover usually comes around 28 March: 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 7 March, while corn waits until 4 April. The first autumn frost follows around 26 November, about 243 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.

When the soil warms up in Dover

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 13 days before the last spring frost and 15 °C 20 days after it.

Frost dates near Dover

Of the nearest cities on our list, the last spring frost ends earliest in Annapolis (29 March) and latest in Philadelphia (3 April).

Seeds, seedlings and markets in Dover

Within 15 km of Dover OpenStreetMap lists 1 market and 2 farm shops (collected 28 October 2026). The nearest market to the city centre is Spence's Bazaar, 1 km away.

• Spence's Bazaar — market
  South New Street 550, 19904 · Tue, Fri 07:30–17:00; Sat 07:30–15:00 · 1 km
• Lancaster County Farmers Market — farm shop
  South New Street 544, 19904 · Tue, Fri 07:00–17:00; Sat 07:00–15:00 · 1 km
• Tractor Supply Co — farm shop
  South Dupont Highway 4089, 19901 · Mon–Sat 08:00–20:00; Sun 09:00–19:00 · 7 km

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

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Weather in Dover by month

Average weather in Dover over 2016–2025: the warmest month is July. Months that average 20 °C or more by day: May–October (20.3–29.9 °C). Nights average below 0 °C in January (-1 °C). About 1326 mm of rain falls in a year, on 129 days; July is the wettest month (167 mm) and November the driest (72 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).