Frost Dates for 05143 — Chester, Vermont

Half of springs at Springfield Hartness Airport, VT see their last 32°F night by May 13; only one in ten is past it by April 28, and one in ten still has one after May 28. Planting tender crops after May 19 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after May 22 20%, and after May 28 10%. The 15 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 24% of the 41 Vermont stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 3 in half of years, as early as September 20 one year in ten, and holds off past October 15 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 10 days later, around October 13; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is May 14, 14 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 143 days in a typical year, shorter than at 44% of the 41 Vermont stations; it reaches 163 days one year in ten and falls short of 122 one year in ten. On average 167 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 May 25, and return around September 23. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 22 and March 26.

July is the warmest month at Springfield Hartness Airport, VT, averaging 81°F by day and 57°F at night; January is the coldest at 30°F and 11°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 81% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 2,193 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 51% of the 41 Vermont stations. 31% of them (671) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 598. Precipitation totals 40.5 inches a year, most in October (4.2") and least in February (2.2"); May to September bring 45% of it.

The nearest other station, N Springfield Lake, VT, 8 miles northeast of Chester, has a last frost 4 days earlier (May 9), a first frost 1 day earlier (October 2), a season 3 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Chester usually arrives around November 8, and the last of the season around April 8. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Cavendish, VT, 8.4 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 35 days after the last snow.

ZIP 05143 is 7 miles from Springfield Hartness Airport, VT, which stands at 578 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 05143 in zone 5b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -15 to -10°F (-26.1 to -23.3°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.