Frost Dates for 68352 — Fairbury, Nebraska

Half of springs at Fairbury 5S, NE see their last 32°F night by April 25; only one in ten is past it by April 9, and one in ten still has one after May 7. Planting tender crops after April 30 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after May 3 20%, and after May 7 10%. The 12 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 57% of the 68 Nebraska stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 15 in half of years, as early as September 30 one year in ten, and holds off past October 26 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 9 days later, around October 24; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 30, 7 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 169 days in a typical year, longer than at 62% of the 68 Nebraska stations; it reaches 188 days one year in ten and falls short of 150 one year in ten. On average 144 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 8 days longer, to about May 3, and return around October 5. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 17 and March 15.

July is the warmest month at Fairbury 5S, NE, averaging 88°F by day and 65°F at night; January is the coldest at 36°F and 14°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 29% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 3,501 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), more than at 81% of the 68 Nebraska stations. 34% of them (1,203) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 824. Precipitation totals 32.6 inches a year, most in May (5.1") and least in January (0.8"); May to September bring 65% of it.

The nearest other station, Beatrice 1N, NE, 26 miles northeast of Fairbury, has a last frost 1 day earlier (April 24), the same first-frost date, a season 3 days longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Fairbury usually arrives around November 28, and the last of the season around March 19. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Fairbury 5S, NE, 5.7 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 37 days after the last snow.

ZIP 68352 is 6 miles from Fairbury 5S, NE, which stands at 1,350 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 68352 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.