Dallas, TX Frost Dates: Last Spring and First Fall Frost

In a typical year the final freeze of spring reaches Dallas around March 2, and the first freeze of autumn returns around November 29. NOAA's normals call the frost-free stretch between them 272 days long.

Because half of all years do worse than the typical date, the dates that matter for tender plants are the late spring date, March 19, and the early fall date, November 10, each of which one year in ten fails to beat. Among the 100 cities covered here, whose median season is 229 days, Dallas ranks 28th for length, with 43 days more than the middle.

These dates come from the NOAA weather station Dallas Love Field (ID USW00013960), 6.6 miles north-west of the Census Bureau's internal point for Dallas, at about 440 feet above sea level.

When is the last frost in Dallas?

Frost is still possible on February 10 in nine springs out of ten and on March 2 in five; only one spring in ten sees a freeze as late as March 19.

The early and late dates are 37 days apart, about the spread most cities on these pages show.

Dallas's first fall frost, by chance

In Dallas the first freeze has arrived by November 10 in one fall out of ten, by November 29 in five, and by December 18 in nine.

38 days separate the early and late fall dates, a broad band compared with most cities here, so a fall crop in Dallas should be planned against the early date, not the typical one.

How long is the frost-free season in Dallas?

The season is somewhat longer than the middle of these pages. Plan on 246 days in a short year, 272 days in a typical one, and as many as 299 days in a long one.

These figures are NOAA's own counts of freeze-free days across its simulated years, which is why they can differ a little from the days between the two typical dates. A night at or below 32°F happens in 100% of years at this station, so frost is a yearly event here.

When a hard freeze reaches Dallas

Hard freezes trail the light ones by 13 days in fall (December 12 against November 29) and by 12 days in spring (February 18 against March 2). The late 28°F spring date, March 9, is the one that still catches blooms and young transplants one year in ten, and the early fall date, November 21, is when a hard freeze has arrived in one fall out of ten.

What this means for planting in Dallas

In Dallas the University of New Hampshire Extension count lands like this, measured from the typical last frost on March 2: lettuce from February 2 to February 9, cabbage on February 2, seed potatoes from February 16 to February 23, then peppers on March 16 and beans from March 2. Peas are the exception to the count: University of New Hampshire Extension says to plant them as soon as the soil thaws, whatever the frost date.

The late date comes 17 days after the typical one; choose it for plants you cannot cover.

Of the 34 crops in the fall planner, 32 still have a July-or-later last planting day in Dallas once NC State Extension's days to harvest and University of Georgia Extension's harvest allowance of 18 days are counted back from frost. The other 2 do not. The slowest crop that still fits is collard greens, at 118 days, and it has to be planted by July 15 to beat the early date.

Worked example: the last day for fall broccoli in Dallas

Take fall broccoli in Dallas. NC State Extension lists up to 80 days from transplant to harvest, and University of Georgia Extension adds a harvest allowance of 18 days, so the plants need 98 days before the first frost. Counting back from the typical first frost, November 29, the last planting day is August 23. Counting back from the early date, November 10, it is August 4.

That is 19 days between the typical and the early schedule; broccoli planted on the later of them risks a frost before harvest in one fall out of ten.

The same crop family has a spring clock too. University of New Hampshire Extension sets cabbage out ahead of the last frost, and from March 2 in Dallas that means on February 2.

The weather station behind these dates

At 6.6 miles north-west, the station is some distance from Dallas, so parts of the city may not match its record.

NOAA lists it at about 440 feet, higher than 33 and lower than 66 of the 100 stations in this set. Its completeness flag is S, which NOAA uses for a standard record.

The Census Gazetteer gives no elevation for Dallas itself, so this page cannot tell you whether your garden sits above or below the station. If it is noticeably higher or lower, compare the stations the frost dates tool lists nearby and lean toward the colder reading.

How Dallas's frost dates compare

Dallas sits in a cluster: Irving, TX is only 13 miles away, and the other two cities below are not much farther, so gaps in their dates come from local setting.

• Irving, TX, 13 miles to the west: last frost March 8, first frost November 24, 262 days frost-free; the last frost is 6 days later than in Dallas, and the frost-free season is 10 days shorter than Dallas's.
• Grand Prairie, TX lies 17 miles south-west of Dallas. Typical last frost March 20, first frost November 13, 236 days between; its last frost comes 18 days after Dallas's, and the frost-free season is 36 days shorter than Dallas's.
• Plano, TX, 18 miles to the north: last frost March 7, first frost November 21, 259 days frost-free; spring frost lingers 5 days longer than in Dallas, and the frost-free season is 13 days shorter than Dallas's.

Put the frost dates to work

Open the frost dates tool with this station already chosen to see the whole ladder of probability dates, or try the nearby stations in the same list. The spring planting planner and the fall planting planner turn the same dates into a full crop list, and the hardiness zone lookup tells you which perennials will survive the winter.

All the cities on these pages are listed by state on the city frost dates index.

For Texas, the state planting pages copy the Extension calendar (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension) crop by crop and region by region: tomatoes in Texas, peppers in Texas, cucumbers in Texas, summer squash in Texas, green beans in Texas. Set those windows beside the frost dates above.

Where these numbers come from

NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals for 1991–2020 (doi:10.25921/4ek7-fk11) supply every frost date here, unchanged from the station's record, and NOAA's documentation defines the probabilities. Dallas and its internal point are listed in the Census Bureau's 2024 Gazetteer of places; its place in the ranking comes from the Vintage 2024 population estimates, which count 1,326,087 residents.

The planting dates apply the count rules in University of New Hampshire Extension, NC State Extension and University of Georgia Extension to this station's dates, with nothing added. See how we source every figure for the checks behind them.

NOAA's dates say how often frost has come, not when it will. Check the forecast before planting and keep a cover on hand.