Pickens, SC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Pickens (USC00386831), elevation 1,075 ft. The station is named for Pickens, and its coordinates are 0.6 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Pickens city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Pickens is Apr 1 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 3, for a typical freeze-free season of 216 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 18, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 21. The station averages 74 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 6 days later than the state median (Mar 26), the median first freeze is 6 days earlier than the state median (Nov 9), and the growing season ranks #87 of 103 by length (longest = #1). The spread between the 90% and 10% spring dates is 33 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 31 | Apr 15 | Apr 30 | Oct 13 | Oct 26 | Nov 6 | 175 / 193 / 213 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Mar 16 | Apr 1 | Apr 18 | Oct 21 | Nov 3 | Nov 18 | 198 / 216 / 238 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 26 | Mar 20 | Apr 4 | Oct 31 | Nov 15 | Dec 4 | 217 / 240 / 270 |
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 Pickens
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 Pickens: Pickens (1 mi), Arial (5 mi), Liberty (6 mi), Six Mile (7 mi), Norris (8 mi), Easley (9 mi).
Nearby stations
- Table Rock, SC — 10 mi; median last freeze Apr 9, first freeze Nov 1
- Clemson Univ, SC — 16 mi; median last freeze Apr 1, first freeze Nov 3
- Caesars Head, SC — 16 mi; median last freeze Apr 10, first freeze Nov 2
- Clemson Oconee Co AP, SC — 17 mi; median last freeze Mar 21, first freeze Nov 11
- Sandy Springs 2 NE, SC — 19 mi; median last freeze Apr 5, first freeze Oct 30
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USC00386831 · Latitude 34.8814, longitude -82.7189 · Elevation 328 m (1,075 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 24.
- Source file: USC00386831.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/18 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 04/01 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 03/16 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/21 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/03 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 11/18 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 238.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 216.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 198.0 |