Aiken, SC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Aiken 2 E (USC00380072), elevation 542 ft. The station is named for Aiken, and its coordinates are 2.1 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Aiken city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Aiken 2 E is Mar 19 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 14, for a typical freeze-free season of 241 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 5, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Nov 1. The station averages 41 nights per year with a low of 32°F or colder.
Compared with the median of 103 South Carolina stations in this dataset, the median last freeze here is 7 days earlier than the state median (Mar 26), the median first freeze is 5 days later than the state median (Nov 9), and the growing season ranks #24 of 103 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 36 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 16 | Mar 31 | Apr 15 | Oct 22 | Nov 3 | Nov 18 | 197 / 218 / 239 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Feb 28 | Mar 19 | Apr 5 | Nov 1 | Nov 14 | Dec 4 | 219 / 241 / 271 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 5 | Mar 4 | Mar 27 | Nov 9 | Nov 30 | Dec 24 | 242 / 272 / 306 |
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 Aiken
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 Aiken 2 E: Aiken (2 mi).
Nearby stations
- Aiken 5SE, SC — 4 mi; median last freeze Mar 21, first freeze Nov 7
- Graniteville 1.2 NE, SC — 6 mi; median last freeze Apr 9, first freeze Nov 1
- Johnston 4 SW, SC — 18 mi; median last freeze Mar 26, first freeze Nov 8
- Wagener 1SW, SC — 20 mi; median last freeze Mar 26, first freeze Nov 9
- Augusta Bush Fld AP, GA — 20 mi; median last freeze Mar 23, first freeze Nov 9
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00380072 · Latitude 33.5500, longitude -81.6969 · Elevation 165 m (542 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: E — Estimated: fewer complete years at this site; NOAA estimated the normals statistically from nearby stations. Treat these dates with extra caution. Years of data used: 5.
- Source file: USC00380072.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/05 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 03/19 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 02/28 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 11/01 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/14 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 12/04 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 271.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 241.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 219.0 |