Frost Dates for 49682 — Suttons Bay, Michigan

Half of springs at Old Mission 3SSW, MI see their last 32°F night by May 13; only one in ten is past it by April 28, and one in ten still has one after May 29. Planting tender crops after May 20 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after May 25 20%, and after May 29 10%. The 16 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 38% of the 172 Michigan stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 19 in half of years, as early as October 1 one year in ten, and holds off past November 5 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 16 days later, around November 4; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is May 19, 10 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 158 days in a typical year, shorter than at 50% of the 172 Michigan stations; it reaches 183 days one year in ten and falls short of 135 one year in ten. On average 157 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 13 days longer, to about May 26, and return around October 4. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between December 10 and March 29.

July is the warmest month at Old Mission 3SSW, MI, averaging 80°F by day and 58°F at night; January is the coldest at 30°F and 17°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from November to April (a 90% chance or more). From June to September the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, May still brings one in 76% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 2,248 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 62% of the 172 Michigan stations. 29% of them (648) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 583.

The nearest other station, Maple City 1E, MI, 14 miles southwest of Suttons Bay, has a last frost 9 days later (May 22), a first frost 10 days earlier (October 9), a season 18 days shorter.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Suttons Bay usually arrives around November 11, and the last of the season around April 17. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at NW Michigan Rsch Farm, MI, 7.8 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 26 days after the last snow.

ZIP 49682 is 8 miles from Old Mission 3SSW, MI, which stands at 656 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 49682 in zone 6b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -5 to 0°F (-20.6 to -17.8°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.