Surf City, NC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Surf City (USC00318380), elevation 24 ft. The station is named for Surf City, and its coordinates are 2.3 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Surf City town.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Surf City is Mar 26 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 13, for a typical freeze-free season of 233 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 9, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 30. 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 6 days earlier than the state median (Apr 1), the median first freeze is 9 days later than the state median (Nov 4), and the growing season ranks #33 of 187 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 29 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 21 | Apr 4 | Apr 20 | Oct 19 | Nov 3 | Nov 18 | 193 / 213 / 233 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Mar 11 | Mar 26 | Apr 9 | Oct 30 | Nov 13 | Dec 3 | 212 / 233 / 259 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 23 | Mar 15 | Mar 31 | Nov 7 | Nov 26 | Dec 20 | 232 / 258 / 288 |
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 Surf City
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 Surf City: Surf City (2 mi), Holly Ridge (3 mi), Topsail Beach (7 mi), North Topsail Beach (8 mi).
Nearby stations
- New River Mcaf, NC — 21 mi; median last freeze Mar 23, first freeze Nov 16
- Wilmington 7 N, NC — 22 mi; median last freeze Mar 29, first freeze Nov 8
- Wilmington Intl AP, NC — 22 mi; median last freeze Mar 19, first freeze Nov 20
- Jacksonville Eoc, NC — 26 mi; median last freeze Mar 31, first freeze Nov 8
- Wilmington 7 SE, NC — 27 mi; median last freeze Mar 20, first freeze Nov 15
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00318380 · Latitude 34.4478, longitude -77.5739 · Elevation 7 m (24 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 13.
- Source file: USC00318380.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/09 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 03/26 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 03/11 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/30 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/13 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 12/03 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 259.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 233.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 212.0 |