Frost Dates for 65655 — Gainesville, Missouri

Half of springs at Dora 3SE, MO see their last 32°F night by April 9; only one in ten is past it by March 24, and one in ten still has one after April 28. Planting tender crops after April 17 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 22 20%, and after April 28 10%. The 19 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 92% of the 158 Missouri 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 8 one year in ten, and holds off past November 5 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 10 days later, around November 2; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 14, 14 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 196 days in a typical year, longer than at 54% of the 158 Missouri stations; it reaches 217 days one year in ten and falls short of 171 one year in ten. On average 96 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 16 days longer, to about April 25, and return around October 14. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between December 11 and February 22.

July is the warmest month at Dora 3SE, MO, averaging 89°F by day and 67°F at night; January is the coldest at 45°F and 25°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 70% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 4,162 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 62% of the 158 Missouri stations. 37% of them (1,547) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 862. Precipitation totals 47.2 inches a year, most in April (5.3") and least in January (2.7"); May to September bring 44% of it.

The nearest other station, Mountain Home Baxter Airport, AR, 17 miles south of Gainesville, has a last frost 7 days earlier (April 2), a first frost 9 days later (November 1), a season 16 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Gainesville usually arrives around January 19, and the last of the season around February 25. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Tecumseh 1NE, MO, 9.5 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Snow fell in 84% of those winters. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 43 days after the last snow.

ZIP 65655 is 16 miles from Dora 3SE, MO, which stands at 966 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 65655 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.