Frost Dates for 40143 — Hardinsburg, Kentucky

Half of springs at Mcdaniels, KY see their last 32°F night by April 11; only one in ten is past it by March 31, and one in ten still has one after April 28. Planting tender crops after April 17 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 22 20%, and after April 28 10%. The 17 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 47% of the 113 Kentucky stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 26 in half of years, as early as October 13 one year in ten, and holds off past November 6 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 9 days later, around November 4; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 14, 14 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 196 days in a typical year, longer than at 55% of the 113 Kentucky stations; it reaches 214 days one year in ten and falls short of 177 one year in ten. On average 94 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 April 23, and return around October 17. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between December 9 and February 28.

July is the warmest month at Mcdaniels, KY, averaging 84°F by day and 67°F at night; January is the coldest at 42°F and 24°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 88% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 3,856 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 58% of the 113 Kentucky stations. 38% of them (1,454) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 797.

The nearest other station, Rough Rvr Lake, KY, 11 miles south of Hardinsburg, has a last frost 6 days later (April 17), a first frost 3 days earlier (October 23), a season 9 days shorter.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Hardinsburg usually arrives around December 26, and the last of the season around February 13. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Cannelton, IN, 14.8 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 57 days after the last snow.

ZIP 40143 is 9 miles from Mcdaniels, KY, which stands at 425 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 40143 in zone 7a, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged 0 to 5°F (-17.8 to -15.0°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.