Fayetteville, NC Frost Dates: Last Spring and First Fall Frost

The last spring frost in Fayetteville, NC comes on March 30 in a typical year, and the first fall frost follows on November 10, leaving a frost-free season of 227 days.

Put April 16 and October 28 on the calendar as well. A spring freeze after the first of them, or a fall freeze before the second, happens in only one year out of ten, so those dates cover nine years in ten. Fayetteville lands within a couple of weeks of the middle of the 100 cities covered here, whose median season is 229 days.

These dates come from the NOAA weather station Fayetteville (PWC) (ID USC00313017), 6.7 miles east of the Census Bureau's internal point for Fayetteville, at about 100 feet above sea level.

Fayetteville's last spring frost, by chance

Frost is still possible on March 9 in nine springs out of ten and on March 30 in five; only one spring in ten sees a freeze as late as April 16.

The early and late dates are 38 days apart, about the spread most cities on these pages show.

When is the first frost in Fayetteville?

In Fayetteville the first freeze has arrived by October 28 in one fall out of ten, by November 10 in five, and by November 29 in nine.

Fall dates in Fayetteville spread over 32 days, about the same as the middle of the 100 cities on these pages.

How long is the frost-free season in Fayetteville?

Neither long nor short next to the other cities here. Plan on 204 days in a short year, 227 days in a typical one, and as many as 253 days in a long one.

NOAA counts these days from its own simulations, so they will not equal the number of days between the two typical dates exactly. At Fayetteville (PWC) a night at or below 32°F turns up in 100% of years, which means these dates apply every winter.

28°F dates in Fayetteville

A wide gap separates 32°F from 28°F here: the typical hard freeze arrives 13 days after the first frost in fall (November 23) and leaves 14 days before the last in spring (March 16). Frost-tolerant crops get a long extension at both ends. At the edges, a 28°F night on or after April 6 happens one spring in ten and one by November 4 one fall in ten; the nine-in-ten dates are February 21 and December 17.

Using Fayetteville's frost dates in the garden

In Fayetteville the University of New Hampshire Extension count lands like this, measured from the typical last frost on March 30: lettuce from March 2 to March 9, cabbage on March 2, seed potatoes from March 16 to March 23, then peppers on April 13 and beans from March 30. The University of New Hampshire Extension sheet gives peas no frost count at all; sow them as soon as the soil thaws.

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

Fall crops are counted back from the first frost, using NC State Extension's days to harvest plus University of Georgia Extension's harvest allowance of 18 days. In Fayetteville only 32 of the 34 crops in the fall planner have a last planting day in July or later, and the other 2 would have to go in before then, in spring or early summer. The slowest crop that still fits is collard greens, at 118 days, and it has to be planted by July 2 to beat the early date.

Worked example: fall broccoli in Fayetteville

Work through broccoli transplants for fall in Fayetteville. The longest days to harvest NC State Extension gives is 80 days, plus University of Georgia Extension's allowance of 18 days, for 98 days in all. Subtract that from the typical first frost on November 10 and the last day to plant is August 4; subtract it from the early date on October 28 and it is July 22.

With only 13 days between the two last days, Fayetteville gardeners can plan on either without much difference.

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 30 in Fayetteville that means on March 2.

About the Fayetteville (PWC) station

The station is 6.7 miles east of the Census Bureau's internal point for Fayetteville, several miles out, so look at the nearest-station list in the frost dates tool before you rely on it.

Its elevation is about 100 feet. Of the 100 stations behind these pages, 79 sit higher and 20 lower. In NOAA's file the record is marked S, meaning standard.

Because the Census file has no elevation for Fayetteville, we cannot say how far your yard is above or below this station. When yours is clearly higher or lower, open the nearby stations in the frost dates tool and favor the colder one.

Fayetteville compared with nearby cities

All three of the closest cities on these pages are within a hundred miles, led by Raleigh, NC at 55 miles, so their differences show how much a few miles can move a frost date.

• Raleigh, NC, 55 miles to the north: last frost March 28, first frost November 8, 229 days frost-free; its last frost falls within a few days of Fayetteville's, and the season is within about a week of Fayetteville's.
• Durham, NC (62 miles, north): its last frost is nearly the same as Fayetteville's, and the season runs 10 days shorter. Its typical dates are April 2 and November 4, with 217 days frost-free.
• Greensboro, NC, 85 miles to the north-west: last frost April 1, first frost November 4, 217 days frost-free; its last frost is nearly the same as Fayetteville's, and the frost-free season is 10 days shorter than Fayetteville's.

Take these dates further

The frost dates tool opens on this station and lists every probability date, not just the ones above. From there, the spring planting planner and fall planting planner turn the dates into crop lists for Fayetteville, and the hardiness zone lookup answers what will overwinter.

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

For North Carolina, the state planting pages copy the Extension calendar (NC State Extension) crop by crop and region by region: tomatoes in North Carolina, peppers in North Carolina, cucumbers in North Carolina, summer squash in North Carolina, green beans in North Carolina. Set those windows beside the frost dates above.

Where these numbers come from

Every frost and freeze date comes from the station's entry in NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals for 1991–2020 (doi:10.25921/4ek7-fk11), with no adjustment, and NOAA's documentation explains what each probability means. The city and its internal point come from the Census Bureau's 2024 Gazetteer of places, and the ranking by size from the Census Bureau's Vintage 2024 city and town population estimates, which put Fayetteville at 209,496 people.

Planting dates here are those rules from University of New Hampshire Extension, NC State Extension and University of Georgia Extension, applied to this station's frost dates and nothing else. Our methodology describes the tests behind every number.

These dates describe odds over many years, not next week's weather. Look at the forecast before you plant, and keep a sheet or row cover ready for a night that does not follow the odds.