Frost Dates for 62618 — Beardstown, Illinois

Half of springs at Rushville, IL see their last 32°F night by April 16; only one in ten is past it by April 2, and one in ten still has one after May 3. Planting tender crops after April 23 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 28 20%, and after May 3 10%. The 17 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 79% of the 158 Illinois stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 23 in half of years, as early as October 10 one year in ten, and holds off past November 3 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 9 days later, around November 1; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 21, 12 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 189 days in a typical year, longer than at 62% of the 158 Illinois stations; it reaches 208 days one year in ten and falls short of 168 one year in ten. On average 121 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 28, and return around October 13. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 30 and March 8.

July is the warmest month at Rushville, IL, averaging 85°F by day and 65°F at night; January is the coldest at 33°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 14% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 3,433 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 54% of the 158 Illinois stations. 36% of them (1,223) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 770. Precipitation totals 40.9 inches a year, most in May (5.3") and least in January (1.8"); May to September bring 54% of it.

The nearest other station, Jacksonville 2E, IL, 22 miles southeast of Beardstown, has a last frost 3 days later (April 19), a first frost 6 days earlier (October 17), a season 10 days shorter.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Beardstown usually arrives around December 9, and the last of the season around March 7. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Beardstown, IL, 0.8 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Snow fell in 74% of those winters. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 40 days after the last snow.

ZIP 62618 is 11 miles from Rushville, IL, which stands at 673 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. 1 other ZIP code shares the station. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 62618 in zone 6a, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -10 to -5°F (-23.3 to -20.6°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.