Frost dates and when to plant in New York State

United States

In New York State the last spring frost comes between 3 April (New York) and 28 April (Ithaca) — the median of 2016–2025 in 6 cities. The first autumn frost comes between 6 November (Albany) and 20 November (New York). The frost-free season lasts 192–231 days. Tomato: plant out into open ground 3 May – 31 July, earliest in New York, latest in New York.

Frost dates by city in New York State

City	Last spring frost	First autumn frost	Frost-free days	Climate zone	Tomato: window
New York	3 April	20 November	231	210–269 frost-free days	3 May – 31 July
Albany	17 April	6 November	203	150–209 frost-free days	19 May – 17 July
Rochester	20 April	12 November	206	150–209 frost-free days	20 May – 23 July
Buffalo	24 April	10 November	200	150–209 frost-free days	20 May – 21 July
Ithaca	28 April	8 November	194	150–209 frost-free days	24 May – 19 July
Syracuse (United States)	28 April	6 November	192	150–209 frost-free days	22 May – 17 July

Median of 2016–2025 for the 25 km grid cell of the city: the last day at or below 0 °C in spring and the first in autumn (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo). In a cold year a frost can come a week or two later — Greenly warns 48 hours ahead.

When to plant in New York State: windows by crop

The earliest start and the latest end among the cities here, each with its city; every city’s own window is on its page. 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
Tomato	3 May (New York) – 31 July (New York)
Cucumber	21 May (New York) – 5 September (New York)
Bell Pepper, Eggplant	21 May (New York) – 31 July (New York)
Zucchini	21 May (New York) – 3 September (New York)
Pumpkin	21 May (New York) – 26 July (New York)
Watermelon	21 May (New York) – 11 August (New York)
Peas	13 March (New York) – 7 September (New York)
Garlic, Tulip, Daffodil, Crocus, Hyacinth	Autumn planting: 7 October (Albany) – end of December (New York)

Weather by month in New York State

Across the 6 cities the warmest month is July (average days 26.7 … 29.9 °C) and the coldest January (average nights -7 … -2.8 °C). Every city averages below 0 °C at night in December–February.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm
January	0.4 … 4.6 °C	-7 … -2.8 °C	82
February	2.5 … 6.8 °C	-6.4 … -2 °C	82
March	7.1 … 10.7 °C	-2.7 … 1.2 °C	86
April	12.3 … 16 °C	2.7 … 6.2 °C	109
May	18.3 … 21.1 °C	8.7 … 11.7 °C	98
June	24 … 26.8 °C	13.9 … 17.2 °C	89
July	26.7 … 29.9 °C	17.5 … 21.1 °C	121
August	25.6 … 28.4 °C	16.8 … 20 °C	109
September	22.5 … 24.8 °C	13.5 … 16.7 °C	88
October	16.2 … 19.3 °C	8.1 … 11 °C	123
November	8.2 … 12.2 °C	1 … 4.1 °C	87
December	2.8 … 6.5 °C	-4.1 … -0.7 °C	99

Day and night: the lowest … highest monthly average among the cities; rain: the middle city (ERA5 via Open-Meteo).

Frost dates and when to plant in New York State

Frost dates by city in New York State

When to plant in New York State: windows by crop

Weather by month in New York State

What to plant month by month: the Northeast and Midwest

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