USDA Hardiness Zone 9b
Frost Dates for 33852 — Lake Placid, Florida
Averages from Archbold Bio Stn, Fl US, the nearest reporting station, 7.9 miles away.
Plant tender crops after February 26, and expect the first autumn freeze around December 22. That leaves about 300 frost-free days.
- Last spring frost
- February 26
- First fall frost
- December 22
- Growing season
- 300 days
- Hardiness zone
- 9b
50% probability
50% probability
frost-free
25 to 30°F annual low
Planting calendar for 33852
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| December 18 – January 1 | Start peppers and aubergines indoors They need eight to ten weeks under lights before they can go out. |
| January 1 – January 15 | Start tomatoes indoors Six to eight weeks gives a transplant big enough to set fruit early. |
| January 29 – February 12 | Sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radish outdoors These tolerate light frost and prefer to germinate in cool soil. |
| February 26 onward | Transplant tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, cucumbers The average last freeze has passed — still watch the actual forecast. |
| by September 29 | Sow the autumn crop of carrots, beets and brassicas They need about twelve weeks to size up before growth stops. |
| by December 8 | Harvest tender crops, or be ready to cover them A first freeze two weeks early is well within normal variation. |
| December 22 onward | Plant garlic, mulch beds, lift tender bulbs Garlic wants a cold spell; bare soil loses structure over winter. |
What these dates mean
Wait until after February 26 to put tender plants — tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash — in the ground. That is the date by which half of years in Lake Placid, Florida are past their last freeze. Harvest before December 22, which leaves roughly 300 frost-free days.
ZIP 33852 sits in USDA hardiness zone 9b, meaning the average coldest night of the year falls between 25 to 30°F. Zone decides what survives the winter; frost dates decide when to plant each spring. They are different questions, and a plant can pass one and fail the other.
These are thirty-year NOAA averages for 1991–2020, not a forecast. Any individual year can frost two to three weeks either side of these dates, so check the actual forecast before planting out.