Frost Dates for 65251 — Fulton, Missouri

Half of springs at Fulton, MO see their last 32°F night by April 10; only one in ten is past it by March 26, and one in ten still has one after April 30. Planting tender crops after April 17 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 22 20%, and after April 30 10%. The 20 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 97% of the 158 Missouri stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 24 in half of years, as early as October 11 one year in ten, and holds off past November 5 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 11 days later, around November 4; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 15, 15 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 195 days in a typical year, longer than at 51% of the 158 Missouri stations; it reaches 215 days one year in ten and falls short of 173 one year in ten. On average 117 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 14 days longer, to about April 24, and return around October 15. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between December 4 and March 2.

July is the warmest month at Fulton, MO, averaging 86°F by day and 66°F at night; January is the coldest at 37°F and 20°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 80% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 3,645 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 86% of the 158 Missouri stations. 36% of them (1,305) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 795. Precipitation totals 44.2 inches a year, most in May (5.2") and least in February (2.2"); May to September bring 51% of it.

The nearest other station, Columbia Regional Airport, MO, 14 miles west of Fulton, has a last frost 3 days earlier (April 7), a first frost 5 days later (October 29), a season 10 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Fulton usually arrives around December 5, and the last of the season around March 20. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Fulton, MO, 0.9 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 21 days after the last snow.

ZIP 65251 is under a mile from Fulton, MO, which stands at 770 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 65251 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.