Frost Dates for 66801 — Emporia, Kansas

Half of springs at Emporia 3 NW, KS see their last 32°F night by April 15; only one in ten is past it by April 2, and one in ten still has one after April 30. Planting tender crops after April 21 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 24 20%, and after April 30 10%. The 15 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is wider than at 57% of the 110 Kansas 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 9 days later, around November 1; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 21, 9 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 190 days in a typical year, longer than at 57% of the 110 Kansas stations; it reaches 210 days one year in ten and falls short of 169 one year in ten. On average 115 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 11 days longer, to about April 26, and return around October 13. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 29 and March 3.

July is the warmest month at Emporia 3 NW, KS, averaging 89°F by day and 67°F at night; January is the coldest at 39°F and 18°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from November to April (a 90% chance or more). From May to September the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month.

Warmth for growing adds up to 3,786 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 85% of the 110 Kansas stations. 35% of them (1,320) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 857. Precipitation totals 35.9 inches a year, most in May (5.4") and least in January (0.8"); May to September bring 62% of it.

The nearest other station, Council Grove Lake, KS, 25 miles northwest of Emporia, has a last frost 4 days earlier (April 11), a first frost 2 days later (October 25), a season 4 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Emporia usually arrives around December 10, and the last of the season around March 21. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Emporia 0.9 W, KS, 0.6 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 25 days after the last snow.

ZIP 66801 is 2 miles from Emporia 3 NW, KS, which stands at 1,238 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 66801 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.