Grandfather Village, NC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Grandfather Mtn (USC00313565), elevation 5,280 ft. The nearest Census place to the station coordinates is Grandfather Village village, 1.3 miles away.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Grandfather Mtn is May 5 and the median first fall freeze is Oct 13, for a typical freeze-free season of 160 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after May 20, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Sep 27. The station averages 115 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 34 days later than the state median (Apr 1), the median first freeze is 22 days earlier than the state median (Nov 4), and the growing season ranks #183 of 187 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 30 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) | Apr 30 | May 13 | May 28 | Sep 22 | Oct 5 | Oct 17 | 124 / 144 / 163 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Apr 20 | May 5 | May 20 | Sep 27 | Oct 13 | Oct 25 | 139 / 160 / 178 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Apr 10 | Apr 26 | May 12 | Oct 7 | Oct 22 | Nov 2 | 157 / 178 / 199 |
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 Grandfather Village
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 Grandfather Mtn: Grandfather Village (1 mi), Linville (3 mi), Newland (5 mi).
Nearby stations
- Banner Elk, NC — 5 mi; median last freeze Apr 30, first freeze Oct 14
- Beech Mtn, NC — 7 mi; median last freeze May 6, first freeze Oct 14
- Blowing Rock 1NW, NC — 8 mi; median last freeze Apr 25, first freeze Oct 21
- Flat Springs 1E, NC — 12 mi; median last freeze Apr 18, first freeze Oct 24
- Boone 1 SE, NC — 13 mi; median last freeze May 2, first freeze Oct 13
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00313565 · Latitude 36.0964, longitude -81.8311 · Elevation 1609 m (5,280 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 27.
- Source file: USC00313565.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 05/20 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 05/05 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 04/20 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 09/27 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 10/13 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 10/25 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 178.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 160.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 139.0 |