Litchfield Beach, SC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Brookgreen Gardens (USC00381093), elevation 20 ft. The nearest Census place to the station coordinates is Litchfield Beach CDP, 3.4 miles away.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Brookgreen Gardens is Mar 18 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 18, for a typical freeze-free season of 247 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 3, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Nov 4. The station averages 31 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 8 days earlier than the state median (Mar 26), the median first freeze is 9 days later than the state median (Nov 9), and the growing season ranks #20 of 103 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 13 | Mar 28 | Apr 14 | Oct 25 | Nov 7 | Nov 26 | 202 / 225 / 249 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Feb 25 | Mar 18 | Apr 3 | Nov 4 | Nov 18 | Dec 8 | 224 / 247 / 277 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 2 | Mar 1 | Mar 23 | Nov 11 | Nov 30 | Dec 27 | 246 / 276 / 312 |
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 Litchfield Beach
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 Brookgreen Gardens: Litchfield Beach (3 mi), Murrells Inlet (3 mi), Pawleys Island (7 mi), Garden City (7 mi), Surfside Beach (9 mi), Bucksport (10 mi).
Nearby stations
- Georgetown Co AP, SC — 19 mi; median last freeze Mar 12, first freeze Nov 24
- Hemingway 8 ESE, SC — 20 mi; median last freeze Mar 23, first freeze Nov 15
- Conway, SC — 22 mi; median last freeze Mar 15, first freeze Nov 22
- Myrtle Beach, SC — 23 mi; median last freeze Mar 21, first freeze Nov 13
- Andrews, SC — 28 mi; median last freeze Mar 23, first freeze Nov 13
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00381093 · Latitude 33.5214, longitude -79.0975 · Elevation 6 m (20 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 23.
- Source file: USC00381093.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/03 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 03/18 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 02/25 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 11/04 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/18 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 12/08 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 277.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 247.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 224.0 |