Rock Hill, SC frost dates
From NOAA weather station Rock Hill York Co AP (USW00053871), elevation 669 ft. The station is named for Rock Hill, and its coordinates are 4.0 miles from the Census Bureau’s internal point for Rock Hill city.
Summary
In the 1991–2020 record, the median last spring freeze (32°F) at Rock Hill York Co AP is Mar 31 and the median first fall freeze is Nov 4, for a typical freeze-free season of 218 days. In about 1 year in 10 the last spring freeze comes after Apr 15, and in about 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives by Oct 23. The station averages 65 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 5 days later than the state median (Mar 26), the median first freeze is 5 days earlier than the state median (Nov 9), and the growing season ranks #81 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 29 | Apr 13 | Apr 28 | Oct 14 | Oct 26 | Nov 7 | 178 / 196 / 215 |
| 32°F (freeze) | Mar 13 | Mar 31 | Apr 15 | Oct 23 | Nov 4 | Nov 19 | 199 / 218 / 241 |
| 28°F (hard freeze) | Feb 27 | Mar 18 | Apr 4 | Nov 1 | Nov 16 | Dec 4 | 219 / 243 / 269 |
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 Rock Hill
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 Rock Hill York Co AP: Newport (2 mi), India Hook (2 mi), Riverview (4 mi), Tega Cay (4 mi), Baxter Village (5 mi), Fort Mill (7 mi), Lake Wylie (8 mi).
Nearby stations
- Winthrop Univ, SC — 4 mi; median last freeze Mar 27, first freeze Nov 5
- York 5 SSE, SC — 9 mi; median last freeze Apr 1, first freeze Nov 3
- Gastonia Muni AP, NC — 16 mi; median last freeze Mar 24, first freeze Nov 9
- Charlotte Douglas AP, NC — 17 mi; median last freeze Mar 30, first freeze Nov 3
- Gastonia, NC — 20 mi; median last freeze Mar 27, first freeze Nov 9
About this station’s data
- Station ID: USW00053871 · Latitude 34.9869, longitude -81.0575 · Elevation 204 m (669 ft)
- NOAA completeness flag: R — Representative: meets WMO standards for 10 or more years; gaps filled from surrounding stations. Years of data used: 20.
- Source file: USW00053871.csv (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 annual/seasonal normals).
Raw values from the NOAA file (32°F)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP10 | 04/15 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 | 03/31 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP90 | 03/13 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP10 | 10/23 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 | 11/04 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP90 | 11/19 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP10 | 241.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP50 | 218.0 |
ANN-TMIN-PRBGSL-T32FP90 | 199.0 |