Frost Dates for 79201 — Childress, Texas

Half of springs at Childress Municipal Airport, TX see their last 32°F night by March 31; only one in ten is past it by March 10, and one in ten still has one after April 15. Planting tender crops after April 5 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after April 9 20%, and after April 15 10%. The 15 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 94% of the 339 Texas stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by November 7 in half of years, as early as October 22 one year in ten, and holds off past November 22 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 11 days later, around November 18; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is April 5, 10 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 222 days in a typical year, shorter than at 84% of the 339 Texas stations; it reaches 245 days one year in ten and falls short of 199 one year in ten. On average 71 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 April 8, and return around October 29. Nights of 24°F, cold enough to damage hardier plants, come in 100% of winters and 16°F in 88%.

July is the warmest month at Childress Municipal Airport, TX, averaging 96°F by day and 72°F at night; January is the coldest at 55°F and 29°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 46% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 5,594 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 87% of the 351 Texas stations. 40% of them (2,226) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 1,045. Precipitation totals 23.9 inches a year, most in June (3.8") and least in January (0.8"); May to September bring 61% of it.

The nearest other station, Memphis, TX, 28 miles northwest of Childress, has a last frost 1 day later (April 1), a first frost 4 days earlier (November 3), a season 7 days shorter.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Childress usually arrives around December 23, and the last of the season around February 6. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Childress 2, TX, 5.2 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Snow fell in 86% of those winters. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 53 days after the last snow.

ZIP 79201 is 3 miles from Childress Municipal Airport, TX, which stands at 1,951 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 79201 in zone 7b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged 5 to 10°F (-15.0 to -12.2°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.