Frost Dates for 74601 — Ponca City, Oklahoma

Half of springs at Ponca City Municipal Airport, OK see their last 32°F night by April 10; only one in ten is past it by March 25, and one in ten still has one after April 27. Planting tender crops after April 17 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 21 20%, and after April 27 10%. The 17 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 41% of the 114 Oklahoma stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by October 27 in half of years, as early as October 14 one year in ten, and holds off past November 10 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 9 days later, around November 5; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 15, 12 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 200 days in a typical year, shorter than at 85% of the 114 Oklahoma stations; it reaches 222 days one year in ten and falls short of 178 one year in ten. On average 89 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 21, and return around October 18. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between December 6 and February 24.

July is the warmest month at Ponca City Municipal Airport, OK, averaging 93°F by day and 71°F at night; January is the coldest at 47°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 75% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 4,948 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 81% of the 114 Oklahoma stations. 37% of them (1,846) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 1,003. Precipitation totals 33.7 inches a year, most in May (5.1") and least in January (1.0"); May to September bring 58% of it.

The nearest other station, Blackwell 4SSE Mesonet, OK, 9 miles west of Ponca City, has a last frost 2 days earlier (April 8), the same first-frost date, a season 1 day longer.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Ponca City usually arrives around December 22, and the last of the season around February 25. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Blackwell 1SSW, OK, 11.7 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Snow fell in 95% of those winters. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 44 days after the last snow.

ZIP 74601 is 2 miles from Ponca City Municipal Airport, OK, which stands at 1,000 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 74601 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.