Frost Dates for 68788 — West Point, Nebraska

Half of springs at W Pt, NE see their last 32°F night by April 28; only one in ten is past it by April 14, and one in ten still has one after May 11. Planting tender crops after May 2 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after May 6 20%, and after May 11 10%. The 13 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 29% of the 68 Nebraska stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 12 in half of years, as early as September 26 one year in ten, and holds off past October 23 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 10 days later, around October 22; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 30, 11 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 165 days in a typical year, longer than at 51% of the 68 Nebraska stations; it reaches 186 days one year in ten and falls short of 146 one year in ten. On average 153 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 9 days longer, to about May 7, and return around October 1. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 15 and March 19.

July is the warmest month at W Pt, NE, averaging 85°F by day and 65°F at night; January is the coldest at 30°F and 11°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 37% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 3,141 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 62% of the 68 Nebraska stations. 35% of them (1,090) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 767. Precipitation totals 30.7 inches a year, most in June (5.2") and least in January (0.7"); May to September bring 64% of it.

The nearest other station, Tekamah, NE, 26 miles east of West Point and 170 feet lower, has the same 50% last-frost date, a first frost 2 days earlier (October 10).

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in West Point usually arrives around November 18, and the last of the season around March 26. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at W Pt, NE, 0.7 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 33 days after the last snow.

ZIP 68788 is under a mile from W Pt, NE, which stands at 1,310 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 68788 in zone 5b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -15 to -10°F (-26.1 to -23.3°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.