Gastonia, NC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Gastonia Muni AP (USW00053870), elevation 797 ft. The station is named for Gastonia, and its coordinates are 4.0 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Gastonia city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Gastonia Muni AP is Mar 24 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 9, for a typical freeze-free season of 230 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 10, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 27. The station averages 60 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 8 days earlier than the state median (Apr 1), the median first freeze is 5 days later than the state median (Nov 4), and the growing season ranks #43 of 187 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 37 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 20 | Apr 6 | Apr 20 | Oct 18 | Oct 31 | Nov 12 | 187 / 207 / 229 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Mar 4 | Mar 24 | Apr 10 | Oct 27 | Nov 9 | Nov 26 | 208 / 230 / 256 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 19 | Mar 11 | Mar 28 | Nov 7 | Nov 22 | Dec 13 | 233 / 256 / 287 |
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 Gastonia
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 Gastonia Muni AP: Clover (7 mi), Kings Mountain (11 mi).
Nearby stations
- Gastonia, NC — 5 mi; median last freeze Mar 27, first freeze Nov 9
- Charlotte Douglas AP, NC — 11 mi; median last freeze Mar 30, first freeze Nov 3
- Rock Hill York Co AP, SC — 16 mi; median last freeze Mar 31, first freeze Nov 4
- York 5 SSE, SC — 19 mi; median last freeze Apr 1, first freeze Nov 3
- Winthrop Univ, SC — 19 mi; median last freeze Mar 27, first freeze Nov 5
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USW00053870 · Latitude 35.1967, longitude -81.1558 · Elevation 243 m (797 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 21.
- Source file: USW00053870.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/10 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 03/24 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 03/04 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/27 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/09 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 11/26 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 256.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 230.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 208.0 |