USDA Hardiness Zone 9b
Frost Dates for 33647 — Tampa, Florida
NOAA 1991–2020 normals from Plant City, FL (110 ft), 16 miles southeast.
Updated
A freeze (32°F) reaches Tampa in 81% of winters. When it does, the first freeze of winter comes around January 6 and the last freeze of winter around January 30; after March 2 the chance of another is under 8%.
- Last freeze
- January 30
- First freeze
- January 6
- Winters with a freeze
- 81%
- Hardiness zone
- 9b
50%, in freezing years
50%, in freezing years
32°F or below, 1991–2020
25 to 30°F (-3.9 to -1.1°C) coldest night
- First snow
- Rare
- Last snow
- Rare
- Winters with snow
- 0%
- Snow per year
- 0"
median, 1991–2020
median, 1991–2020
0 of 20 observed
NOAA normal
Frost risk by date in Tampa
In the 81% of winters that bring a 32°F night, half of winters at Plant City, FL see their last 32°F night by January 30; only one in ten is past it by December 31, and one in ten still has one after March 2. Counting the winters with no freeze at all, the risk of a 32°F night after March 2 is under 8% and after January 30 40%. The 31 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 91% of the 101 Florida stations behind this site's ZIP pages, so a fixed calendar date is a gamble here.
In fall the first 32°F night comes by January 6 in half of years, as early as December 8 one year in ten, and holds off past February 5 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F is less common: it came in 40% of winters. On average 3 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 17 days longer, to about February 16, and return around December 25. A 24°F night is unusual: 13% of winters had one.
| Low | 90% | 80% | 70% | 60% | 50% | 40% | 30% | 20% | 10% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36°F98% of yrs | Jan 17 | Jan 29 | Feb 2 | Feb 9 | Feb 16 | Feb 23 | Feb 28 | Mar 7 | Mar 17 |
| 32°F81% of yrs | Dec 31 | Jan 9 | Jan 16 | Jan 24 | Jan 30 | Feb 3 | Feb 9 | Feb 20 | Mar 2 |
| 28°F40% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 24°F13% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 20°F2% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| Low | 10% | 20% | 30% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% | 80% | 90% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36°F98% of yrs | Nov 27 | Dec 4 | Dec 10 | Dec 18 | Dec 25 | Dec 31 | Jan 4 | Jan 10 | Jan 22 |
| 32°F81% of yrs | Dec 8 | Dec 19 | Dec 28 | Jan 1 | Jan 6 | Jan 11 | Jan 19 | Jan 26 | Feb 5 |
| 28°F40% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 24°F13% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
| 20°F2% of yrs | too rare for a date | ||||||||
Freeze probabilities 1991–2020 at Plant City, FL, from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Where a temperature is reached in fewer than 99.5% of years, the dates describe only the years that reach it. Not a forecast.
Frost risk on any date in 33647 →Compare Tampa with another place →
Weather by month in Tampa
July is the warmest month at Plant City, FL, averaging 94°F by day and 73°F at night; January is the coldest at 75°F and 50°F. From March to November the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, February still brings one in 29% of years.
Warmth for growing adds up to 8,907 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 73% of the 158 Florida stations. 45% of them (3,974) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 1,042. Precipitation totals 56.2 inches a year, most in June (9.7") and least in November (1.8"); May to September bring 68% of it.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | 32°F night | Nights ≤ 32°F | GDD 50°F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 75 | 50 | 3.0 | 57% | 2 | 395 |
| Feb | 78 | 53 | 2.3 | 29% | 1 | 431 |
| Mar | 81 | 56 | 2.8 | 10% | <1 | 579 |
| Apr | 86 | 61 | 2.9 | 0% | 0 | 707 |
| May | 91 | 67 | 4.0 | 0% | 0 | 890 |
| Jun | 93 | 72 | 9.7 | 0% | 0 | 972 |
| Jul | 94 | 73 | 8.7 | 0% | 0 | 1042 |
| Aug | 94 | 74 | 8.9 | 0% | 0 | 1042 |
| Sep | 92 | 72 | 7.0 | 0% | 0 | 968 |
| Oct | 87 | 66 | 2.6 | 0% | 0 | 828 |
| Nov | 81 | 58 | 1.8 | 3% | 0 | 582 |
| Dec | 77 | 53 | 2.5 | 28% | 1 | 472 |
Monthly normals 1991–2020 at Plant City, FL (110 ft), NOAA NCEI. "32°F night": chance of at least one in the month. GDD: growing degree days, base 50°F.
Compared with the next station
The nearest other station, Saint Leo, FL, 16 miles northeast of Tampa, has a last frost 1 day later (January 31), a first frost 2 days later (January 8), a season 1 day longer.
When it snows in Tampa, Florida
Measurable snow is rare here: only 0 of 20 winters from 1991 to 2020 recorded 0.1 inch or more at Hillsborough Rvr Sp, FL, 8.3 miles away, so there is no typical first-snow date to plan around.
Where these figures come from
ZIP 33647 is 16 miles from Plant City, FL, which stands at 110 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. 11 other ZIP codes share the station. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 33647 in zone 9b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged 25 to 30°F (-3.9 to -1.1°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.
Hardiness zone and temperature range: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (USDA-ARS, Oregon State University), ZIP-code listing, unchanged. °C converted from °F by this site.
Thirty-year averages, not a forecast: check the forecast before planting out. How stations are matched and which pages are offered to search engines: methodology.