USDA Hardiness Zone 5b
Frost Dates for 81657 — Vail, Colorado
Averages from Vail, Co US, the nearest reporting station, 1 miles away.
Plant tender crops after June 21, and expect the first autumn freeze around September 7. That leaves about 77 frost-free days.
- Last spring frost
- June 21
- First fall frost
- September 7
- Growing season
- 77 days
- Hardiness zone
- 5b
50% probability
50% probability
frost-free
-15 to -10°F annual low
Planting calendar for 81657
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| April 12 – April 26 | Start peppers and aubergines indoors They need eight to ten weeks under lights before they can go out. |
| April 26 – May 10 | Start tomatoes indoors Six to eight weeks gives a transplant big enough to set fruit early. |
| May 24 – June 7 | Sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radish outdoors These tolerate light frost and prefer to germinate in cool soil. |
| June 21 onward | Transplant tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, cucumbers The average last freeze has passed — still watch the actual forecast. |
| by June 15 | Sow the autumn crop of carrots, beets and brassicas They need about twelve weeks to size up before growth stops. |
| by August 24 | Harvest tender crops, or be ready to cover them A first freeze two weeks early is well within normal variation. |
| September 7 onward | Plant garlic, mulch beds, lift tender bulbs Garlic wants a cold spell; bare soil loses structure over winter. |
What these dates mean
Wait until after June 21 to put tender plants — tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash — in the ground. That is the date by which half of years in Vail, Colorado are past their last freeze. Harvest before September 7, which leaves roughly 77 frost-free days.
ZIP 81657 sits in USDA hardiness zone 5b, meaning the average coldest night of the year falls between -15 to -10°F. Zone decides what survives the winter; frost dates decide when to plant each spring. They are different questions, and a plant can pass one and fail the other.
These are thirty-year NOAA averages for 1991–2020, not a forecast. Any individual year can frost two to three weeks either side of these dates, so check the actual forecast before planting out.