Marion, SC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Marion (USC00385509), elevation 75 ft. The station is named for Marion, and its coordinates are 1.0 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Marion city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Marion is Mar 22 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 11, for a typical freeze-free season of 234 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 13, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 30. The station averages 49 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 4 days earlier than the state median (Mar 26), the median first freeze is 2 days later than the state median (Nov 9), and the growing season ranks #45 of 103 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 44 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 19 | Apr 6 | Apr 22 | Oct 20 | Nov 1 | Nov 18 | 187 / 209 / 231 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Feb 28 | Mar 22 | Apr 13 | Oct 30 | Nov 11 | Dec 2 | 208 / 234 / 263 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 9 | Mar 4 | Mar 30 | Nov 6 | Nov 24 | Dec 17 | 232 / 264 / 297 |
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 Marion
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 Marion: Marion (1 mi), Rains (6 mi), Sellers (9 mi), Centenary (10 mi).
Nearby stations
- Mullins, SC — 8 mi; median last freeze Mar 26, first freeze Nov 11
- Dillon, SC — 17 mi; median last freeze Mar 28, first freeze Nov 8
- Florence Rgnl AP, SC — 19 mi; median last freeze Mar 19, first freeze Nov 13
- Florence 8 NE, SC — 22 mi; median last freeze Mar 22, first freeze Nov 10
- Lumber Rvr Sp, NC — 27 mi; median last freeze Apr 1, first freeze Nov 5
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00385509 · Latitude 34.1653, longitude -79.3875 · Elevation 23 m (75 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 18.
- Source file: USC00385509.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/13 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 03/22 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 02/28 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/30 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/11 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 12/02 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 263.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 234.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 208.0 |