Frost Dates for 56482 — Wadena, Minnesota

Half of springs at Wadena 3 S, MN see their last 32°F night by May 10; only one in ten is past it by April 29, and one in ten still has one after May 25. Planting tender crops after May 15 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after May 19 20%, and after May 25 10%. The 15 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 64% of the 142 Minnesota stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by September 30 in half of years, as early as September 17 one year in ten, and holds off past October 13 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 10 days later, around October 10; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is May 13, 12 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 141 days in a typical year, shorter than at 75% of the 142 Minnesota stations; it reaches 160 days one year in ten and falls short of 122 one year in ten. On average 183 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 10 days longer, to about May 20, and return around September 21. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 9 and April 3.

July is the warmest month at Wadena 3 S, MN, averaging 78°F by day and 58°F at night; January is the coldest at 18°F and -1°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from October to April (a 90% chance or more). From June to August the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, May still brings one in 83% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 1,962 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 82% of the 142 Minnesota stations. 32% of them (623) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 552. Precipitation totals 29.4 inches a year, most in June (4.4") and least in February (0.8"); May to September bring 64% of it.

The nearest other station, New York Mills, MN, 13 miles northwest of Wadena, has the same 50% last-frost date, a first frost 1 day earlier (September 29).

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Wadena usually arrives around November 10, and the last of the season around April 12. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Wadena 3 S, MN, 3.7 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 28 days after the last snow.

ZIP 56482 is 4 miles from Wadena 3 S, MN, which stands at 1,372 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. 4 other ZIP codes share the station. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 56482 in zone 4a, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -30 to -25°F (-34.4 to -31.7°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.