Lenoir, NC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Lenoir (USC00314938), elevation 1,155 ft. The station is named for Lenoir, and its coordinates are 0.9 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Lenoir city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Lenoir is Apr 7 and the median first fall freeze is Oct 31, for a typical freeze-free season of 207 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 28, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 18. The station averages 91 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 6 days later than the state median (Apr 1), the median first freeze is 4 days earlier than the state median (Nov 4), and the growing season ranks #121 of 187 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 38 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 4 | Apr 21 | May 10 | Oct 9 | Oct 22 | Nov 3 | 161 / 183 / 204 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Mar 21 | Apr 7 | Apr 28 | Oct 18 | Oct 31 | Nov 12 | 184 / 207 / 227 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Mar 7 | Mar 25 | Apr 9 | Oct 28 | Nov 9 | Nov 27 | 208 / 230 / 254 |
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 Lenoir
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 Lenoir: Lenoir (1 mi), Cajah's Mountain (4 mi), Cedar Rock (5 mi), Gamewell (5 mi), Hudson (5 mi).
Nearby stations
- Hickory FAA AP, NC — 15 mi; median last freeze Mar 31, first freeze Nov 4
- Morganton, NC — 15 mi; median last freeze Apr 7, first freeze Oct 28
- Blowing Rock 1NW, NC — 19 mi; median last freeze Apr 25, first freeze Oct 21
- Taylorsville, NC — 20 mi; median last freeze Apr 2, first freeze Nov 4
- Grandfather Mtn, NC — 21 mi; median last freeze May 5, first freeze Oct 13
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00314938 · Latitude 35.9147, longitude -81.5375 · Elevation 352 m (1,155 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: S — Standard: meets WMO data-availability standards for 24 or more years. Years of data used: 27.
- Source file: USC00314938.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/28 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 04/07 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 03/21 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/18 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 10/31 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 11/12 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 227.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 207.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 184.0 |