Frost Dates for 04743 — Fort Kent, Maine

Half of springs at Fort Kent, ME see their last 32°F night by May 23; only one in ten is past it by May 8, and one in ten still has one after June 6. Planting tender crops after May 29 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after June 2 20%, and after June 6 10%. The 14 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 69% of the 52 Maine stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by September 24 in half of years, as early as September 11 one year in ten, and holds off past October 5 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 9 days later, around October 3; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is May 23, 14 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 121 days in a typical year, shorter than at 98% of the 52 Maine stations; it reaches 139 days one year in ten and falls short of 102 one year in ten. On average 201 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 12 days longer, to about June 4, and return around September 13. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 9 and April 10.

July is the warmest month at Fort Kent, ME, averaging 76°F by day and 54°F at night; January is the coldest at 19°F and -3°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from October to May (a 90% chance or more). From July to August the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, June still brings one in 23% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 1,431 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), the fewest of the 52 Maine stations. 26% of them (379) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 457. Precipitation totals 41.6 inches a year, most in July (4.5") and least in February (2.3"); May to September bring 47% of it.

The nearest other station, Frenchville Aroostook Airport, ME, 13 miles northeast of Fort Kent and 378 feet higher, has a last frost 17 days earlier (May 6), a first frost 8 days later (October 2), a season 26 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Fort Kent usually arrives around November 6, and the last of the season around April 14. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Fort Kent, ME, 2.7 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 39 days after the last snow.

ZIP 04743 is 3 miles from Fort Kent, ME, which stands at 610 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 04743 in zone 4b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -25 to -20°F (-31.7 to -28.9°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.