Frost Dates for 27850 — Littleton, North Carolina

Half of springs at Roanoke Rapids Airport, NC see their last 32°F night by March 27; only one in ten is past it by March 10, and one in ten still has one after April 8. Planting tender crops after April 1 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 4 20%, and after April 8 10%. The 12 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 98% of the 173 North Carolina stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by November 12 in half of years, as early as October 31 one year in ten, and holds off past November 27 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 14 days later, around November 26; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is March 29, 10 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 230 days in a typical year, longer than at 79% of the 173 North Carolina stations; it reaches 254 days one year in ten and falls short of 211 one year in ten. On average 59 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 11 days longer, to about April 7, and return around November 1. Nights of 24°F, cold enough to damage hardier plants, come in 100% of winters and 16°F in 68%.

July is the warmest month at Roanoke Rapids Airport, NC, averaging 90°F by day and 70°F at night; January is the coldest at 51°F and 32°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from November to March (a 90% chance or more). From May to September the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, April still brings one in 33% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 4,839 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 58% of the 173 North Carolina stations. 38% of them (1,848) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 922.

The nearest other station, Arcola, NC, 12 miles south of Littleton, has a last frost 7 days later (April 3), a first frost 7 days earlier (November 5), a season 13 days shorter.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Littleton usually arrives around January 15, and the last of the season around February 12. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Arcola, NC, 11.9 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Snow fell in 84% of those winters. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 43 days after the last snow.

ZIP 27850 is 11 miles from Roanoke Rapids Airport, NC, which stands at 256 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 27850 in zone 8a, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged 10 to 15°F (-12.2 to -9.4°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.