Frost Dates for 42031 — Clinton, Kentucky

Half of springs at Bardwell 2 E, KY see their last 32°F night by April 6; only one in ten is past it by March 18, and one in ten still has one after April 22. Planting tender crops after April 12 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 17 20%, and after April 22 10%. The 16 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 68% of the 113 Kentucky stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 30 in half of years, as early as October 18 one year in ten, and holds off past November 12 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 8 days later, around November 7; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 11, 11 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 204 days in a typical year, longer than at 72% of the 113 Kentucky stations; it reaches 229 days one year in ten and falls short of 184 one year in ten. On average 88 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 17, and return around October 21. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes in 99% of winters, usually between December 14 and February 14.

July is the warmest month at Bardwell 2 E, KY, averaging 90°F by day and 69°F at night; January is the coldest at 45°F and 27°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 66% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 4,528 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 87% of the 113 Kentucky stations. 39% of them (1,744) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 910.

The nearest other station, Union City, TN, 20 miles south of Clinton, has a last frost 3 days earlier (April 3), a first frost 1 day earlier (October 29), a season 4 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Clinton usually arrives around December 20, and the last of the season around February 6. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Bardwell 2 E, KY, 14.2 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Snow fell in 87% of those winters. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 59 days after the last snow.

ZIP 42031 is 14 miles from Bardwell 2 E, KY, which stands at 410 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. 2 other ZIP codes share the station. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 42031 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.