Frost Dates for 04462 — Millinocket, Maine

Half of springs at Millinocket, ME see their last 32°F night by May 9; only one in ten is past it by April 28, and one in ten still has one after May 24. Planting tender crops after May 15 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after May 19 20%, and after May 24 10%. The 15 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 83% of the 52 Maine stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 5 in half of years, as early as September 23 one year in ten, and holds off past October 22 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 14 days later, around October 19; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is May 10, 14 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 147 days in a typical year, shorter than at 62% of the 52 Maine stations; it reaches 166 days one year in ten and falls short of 128 one year in ten. On average 179 nights a year drop to 32°F or below. Nights of 36°F, when frost can still settle on leaves in low, open spots, continue 13 days longer, to about May 22, and return around September 25. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 21 and April 2.

July is the warmest month at Millinocket, ME, averaging 79°F by day and 57°F at night; January is the coldest at 24°F and 5°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from October to April (a 90% chance or more). From June to August the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, May still brings one in 79% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 1,908 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 67% of the 52 Maine stations. 27% of them (522) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 553. Precipitation totals 45.2 inches a year, most in October (4.7") and least in February (2.7"); May to September bring 45% of it.

The nearest other station, Lincoln Sanitary District/Wtp, ME, 22 miles southeast of Millinocket and 170 feet lower, has a last frost 5 days earlier (May 4), a first frost 1 day later (October 6), a season 6 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Millinocket usually arrives around November 12, and the last of the season around April 6. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Millinocket, ME, 2.1 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Every one of those winters saw snow. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 33 days after the last snow.

ZIP 04462 is 2 miles from Millinocket, ME, which stands at 360 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 04462 in zone 5a, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -20 to -15°F (-28.9 to -26.1°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.