Durham, NC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Durham (USC00312515), elevation 400 ft. The station is named for Durham, and its coordinates are 5.7 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Durham city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Durham is Apr 2 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 4, for a typical freeze-free season of 217 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 18, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 24. The station averages 84 nights per year with a low of 32°F or colder.
Compared with the median of 187 North Carolina stations in this dataset, the median last freeze here is 1 day later than the state median (Apr 1), the median first freeze is the same day as the state median (Nov 4), and the growing season ranks #93 of 187 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 34 days, a measure of how variable spring is here.
Freeze probability table
| Threshold | Last spring occurrence | First fall occurrence | Season length (days) 90% / 50% / 10% | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Early (90% chance of a later freeze) | Median (50%) | Cautious (10% chance of a later freeze) | Early (10% chance by then) | Median (50%) | Late (90% chance by then) | ||
| 36°F (light frost possible) | Mar 30 | Apr 14 | May 1 | Oct 13 | Oct 27 | Nov 6 | 172 / 194 / 214 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Mar 15 | Apr 2 | Apr 18 | Oct 24 | Nov 4 | Nov 19 | 197 / 217 / 239 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 28 | Mar 19 | Apr 6 | Nov 2 | Nov 16 | Dec 7 | 219 / 242 / 269 |
Read the spring “Cautious” column as the safer planting date: only about 1 year in 10 has a freeze after it. NOAA computes these from daily minimum temperatures at the station; your yard can differ, especially in low spots or at a different elevation.
Planting calendar for Durham
Pick how much frost risk you accept. The calendar applies generic, extension-published timing rules to this station’s dates. See the rules and sources.
| Crop | Start seeds indoors | Plant outdoors (spring) | Latest fall planting (est.) | Days to harvest |
|---|
Fall estimates count back from the median first fall freeze (32°F for tender crops, 28°F hard freeze for cool-season crops) by the longer days-to-harvest figure. These are rough planning aids, not recommendations for any specific variety; check seed packets and your county extension office.
Towns that use this station as their nearest
Census places within 15 miles whose closest station in this dataset is Durham: Durham (6 mi), Gorman (9 mi).
Nearby stations
- Durham 11 W, NC — 9 mi; median last freeze Mar 31, first freeze Nov 4
- Chapel Hill Williams AP, NC — 9 mi; median last freeze Mar 29, first freeze Nov 5
- Chapel Hill 2 W, NC — 11 mi; median last freeze Mar 31, first freeze Nov 3
- Raleigh Durham Intl AP, NC — 14 mi; median last freeze Mar 31, first freeze Nov 4
- Cane Creek Rsvr, NC — 17 mi; median last freeze Apr 6, first freeze Nov 1
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00312515 · Latitude 36.0425, longitude -78.9625 · Elevation 122 m (400 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 16.
- Source file: USC00312515.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/18 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 04/02 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 03/15 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/24 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/04 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 11/19 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 239.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 217.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 197.0 |