GreenlyGardening in France: climate, frost dates and crops by region
We worked out the season of 45 cities of France from ten years of weather: the frost-free season lasts from 173 days in Grenoble to 335 days in Montpellier. The last spring frost comes first in Perpignan (around 17 January) and last in Grenoble (around 5 May). One of the cities had no frost at all.
Climate zones of France
By the days between the last spring frost and the first autumn frost.
| Zone | Cities | Frost-free days | Last spring frost | First autumn frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 270 frost-free days or more | Le Havre, Brest (France), Quimper, La Rochelle, Bordeaux, Avignon, Nîmes, Nice, Montpellier, Bayonne, Perpignan, Ajaccio | 272 – 335 | 17 January – 10 March | 30 November – 28 December |
| 210–269 frost-free days | Lille, Amiens, Rouen, Reims, Caen, Metz, Paris, Nancy, Strasbourg, Troyes, Rennes, Colmar, Le Mans, Orléans, Mulhouse, Angers, Tours, Dijon, Besançon, Nantes, Poitiers, Annecy, Limoges, Clermont-Ferrand, Lyon, Chambéry, Saint-Étienne, Valence, Toulouse, Pau | 211 – 268 | 7 March – 20 April | 12 November – 5 December |
| 150–209 frost-free days | Grenoble | 173 | 5 May | 25 October |
| Frost without a regular season | Marseille | — | 11 February | — |
| No frost in ten years | Toulon | — | — | — |
How the regions of France differ
Splitting the cities in two — north (Lille, Amiens, Le Havre and 19 more) and south (Poitiers, La Rochelle, Annecy and 19 more): the last spring frost comes about 25 days later in the north; the frost-free season is about 229 days in the north and 264 days in the south; the warmest month averages 25.3 °C by day in the north and 27.6 °C in the south.
Splitting the cities in two — west (Lille, Perpignan, Paris and 19 more) and east (Ajaccio, Strasbourg, Colmar and 19 more): the last spring frost comes about 25 days later in the east; the frost-free season is about 261 days in the west and 227 days in the east.
The gap between the warmest month’s days and the coldest month’s nights is widest in Nîmes (28.7 °C) and smallest in Toulon (15.9 °C): the smaller it is, the milder both winter and summer. Chambéry is the wettest of these cities with 1,530 mm a year, Perpignan the driest with 518 mm. The hottest summer days are in Nîmes (32 °C on average in the warmest month), the coolest in Brest (France) (20.9 °C). In 7 of the 45 cities at least one month averages below 0 °C at night; the longest such winter is in Grenoble (November–March).
Which crops suit which part of France
Season long enough: the days from planting to the first autumn frost cover the days to the first harvest on the plant card. 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.
| Crop | Planting out or sowing | Season long enough | Tight or too short |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato | 5 April (Perpignan) – 7 September (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Cucumber | 24 April (Perpignan) – 13 October (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Bell Pepper, Eggplant | 24 April (Perpignan) – 7 September (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Zucchini | 24 April (Perpignan) – 11 October (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Pumpkin | 24 April (Perpignan) – 2 September (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Watermelon | 24 April (Perpignan) – 18 September (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Peas | 27 December (Perpignan) – 15 October (Montpellier) | all 44 | — |
| Garlic, Tulip, Daffodil, Crocus, Hyacinth | Autumn planting: 25 September (Grenoble) – end of December (Lille) | — | — |
Cities without a spring frost: months that suit each crop
Months whose average day is not above the highest temperature on the plant card and whose average night is not below its lowest.
| City | Tomato | Cucumber | Bell Pepper | Eggplant | Watermelon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toulon | June–October | June–September | May–October | July, August | June–September |
Cities of France: weather in numbers
| City | Frost-free days | Warmest month, day | Coldest month, night | Rain a year | Driest month | Places to buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lille | 227 | August, 23.3 °C | January, 1.3 °C | 775 mm | April | 51 |
| Amiens | 230 | August, 23.1 °C | January, 1.1 °C | 860 mm | April | 25 |
| Le Havre | 301 | July, 22 °C | January, 3.9 °C | 1,032 mm | April | 22 |
| Rouen | 229 | July, 23 °C | January, 1.6 °C | 893 mm | August | 38 |
| Reims | 218 | August, 24.8 °C | January, 1 °C | 792 mm | April | 20 |
| Caen | 268 | August, 22.5 °C | January, 3.2 °C | 795 mm | April | 52 |
| Metz | 216 | August, 25.5 °C | January, 0 °C | 869 mm | August | 32 |
| Paris | 226 | August, 25.2 °C | January, 1.8 °C | 781 mm | April | 56 |
| Nancy | 218 | August, 25.4 °C | January, -0.1 °C | 870 mm | August | 39 |
| Strasbourg | 228 | July, 26.2 °C | January, 0.1 °C | 876 mm | March | 43 |
| Brest (France) | 295 | July, 20.9 °C | January, 4.8 °C | 1,164 mm | July | 44 |
| Troyes | 228 | August, 25.7 °C | January, 1 °C | 807 mm | August | 12 |
| Rennes | 261 | August, 24.4 °C | January, 2.9 °C | 814 mm | August | 53 |
| Colmar | 211 | August, 23.2 °C | January, -1.5 °C | 1,079 mm | September | 26 |
| Le Mans | 236 | July, 25.3 °C | January, 2.3 °C | 757 mm | July | 32 |
| Quimper | 276 | July, 22.1 °C | January, 4.3 °C | 1,180 mm | August | 31 |
| Orléans | 237 | July, 25.4 °C | January, 1.8 °C | 799 mm | April | 50 |
| Mulhouse | 225 | August, 26.4 °C | January, -0.4 °C | 895 mm | September | 21 |
| Angers | 260 | August, 25.9 °C | January, 2.8 °C | 730 mm | August | 49 |
| Tours | 254 | August, 25.7 °C | January, 2.2 °C | 766 mm | July | 44 |
| Dijon | 221 | August, 26.4 °C | January, 0.2 °C | 866 mm | February | 31 |
| Besançon | 220 | August, 25.7 °C | January, 0.2 °C | 1,252 mm | August | 29 |
| Nantes | 267 | August, 25.5 °C | January, 3.4 °C | 834 mm | July | 46 |
| Poitiers | 245 | August, 26.1 °C | January, 2.5 °C | 807 mm | July | 16 |
| La Rochelle | 301 | August, 24.9 °C | January, 4.5 °C | 913 mm | July | 21 |
| Annecy | 213 | August, 24.7 °C | January, -1.6 °C | 1,329 mm | August | 40 |
| Limoges | 240 | August, 25.9 °C | January, 1.8 °C | 997 mm | August | 28 |
| Clermont-Ferrand | 211 | August, 22.5 °C | January, -1.7 °C | 943 mm | February | 41 |
| Lyon | 244 | August, 28.3 °C | January, 0.6 °C | 878 mm | February | 52 |
| Chambéry | 229 | August, 27.4 °C | January, 0.1 °C | 1,530 mm | February | 36 |
| Saint-Étienne | 218 | August, 25.7 °C | January, -0.9 °C | 957 mm | February | 46 |
| Grenoble | 173 | August, 22.8 °C | January, -5.1 °C | 1,427 mm | July | 49 |
| Valence | 248 | August, 29.4 °C | January, 1 °C | 880 mm | August | 41 |
| Bordeaux | 288 | August, 28 °C | January, 3.4 °C | 944 mm | July | 46 |
| Avignon | 289 | July, 31.7 °C | January, 3 °C | 803 mm | July | 35 |
| Nîmes | 289 | July, 32 °C | January, 3.3 °C | 797 mm | July | 26 |
| Nice | 272 | August, 27.8 °C | January, 1.4 °C | 854 mm | July | 34 |
| Montpellier | 335 | July, 30.1 °C | January, 4.4 °C | 749 mm | July | 55 |
| Toulouse | 261 | August, 29.1 °C | January, 2.4 °C | 787 mm | July | 43 |
| Bayonne | 325 | August, 25.3 °C | January, 5.1 °C | 1,501 mm | July | 44 |
| Pau | 267 | August, 26.7 °C | January, 2.1 °C | 1,286 mm | July | 39 |
| Marseille | — | July, 29.1 °C | January, 5.8 °C | 592 mm | July | 34 |
| Toulon | no frost | August, 25.8 °C | January, 9.9 °C | 663 mm | July | 40 |
| Perpignan | 329 | August, 30 °C | January, 5.1 °C | 518 mm | July | 50 |
| Ajaccio | 301 | August, 29.9 °C | January, 4.3 °C | 1,051 mm | July | 10 |
ERA5 2016–2025 via Open-Meteo, 25 km grid cell of each city; dates by the Greenly calendar and the plant cards.
France by region: frost dates and planting windows
Each region’s page sets its cities side by side: frost dates, planting windows and weather by month.
