Lincoln, NE Frost Dates: Last Spring and First Fall Frost

Lincoln gardeners can count on April 24 as the even-odds date for the last spring frost and October 13 as the even-odds date for the first fall frost, which adds up to 171 days without a freeze in a typical year.

Dates at even odds leave half of all years unprotected. The safer pair for Lincoln is May 7 in spring, which only one year in ten passes, and September 29 in fall, which one year in ten arrives before. The median season across the 100 cities on these pages is 229 days; Lincoln comes up 58 days short of it, 93rd on the list.

These dates come from the NOAA weather station Lincoln Muni AP (ID USW00014939), 4.7 miles north-west of the Census Bureau's internal point for Lincoln, at about 1,200 feet above sea level.

Lincoln's last spring frost, by chance

NOAA gives April 10 as the date a spring freeze is still ahead in nine years out of ten, April 24 as the date it is still ahead in half of them, and May 7 as the date only one year in ten passes.

Only 27 days separate the earliest and latest of these dates, a tighter run than most of the 100 cities here, so the typical date is a fairly dependable guide in Lincoln.

Lincoln's first fall frost, by chance

Expect the first freeze of fall by October 13 in a typical year. One year in ten brings it by September 29, and nine in ten have had it by October 24.

Just 25 days separate the early and late dates, tighter than most cities on these pages.

The growing season in Lincoln

The season is somewhat shorter than the middle of these pages, so a seed packet's days to maturity deserve a second look. Seasons here barely vary: the typical year gives 171 days and a short one still gives 151 days, only 20 days less, a steadier record than most cities on these pages.

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

When a hard freeze reaches Lincoln

A hard freeze follows the first frost quickly in Lincoln: the typical 28°F night arrives on October 22 in fall, only 9 days after the first 32°F one on October 13, and in spring the last one comes on April 15, 9 days before the last 32°F frost. Tender plants get little warning here. At the edges, a 28°F night on or after April 29 happens one spring in ten and one by October 8 one fall in ten; the nine-in-ten dates are April 2 and November 2.

Using Lincoln's frost dates in the garden

University of New Hampshire Extension sorts vegetables by how they cope with cold. Cool-season crops go out before the last frost: counting from April 24, cabbage transplants go in on March 27 and lettuce from March 27 to April 3. Tender crops wait until it has passed, with peppers going out on May 8 and beans sown on or after April 24. 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 13 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 Lincoln only 23 of the 34 crops in the fall planner have a last planting day in July or later, and the other 11 would have to go in before then, in spring or early summer. The slowest crop that still fits is collard greens, which needs 90 days before the early first frost and so must be in by July 1.

Worked example: tomatoes in Lincoln

Suppose you want tomatoes in Lincoln. University of New Hampshire Extension says to set transplants out one to two weeks after the last frost. Counting from the typical date, April 24, the window runs from May 1 to May 8. Counting from the late date, May 7, it moves to May 14 through May 21, which is 13 days later.

To have transplants ready on the first day of the late window, sow seeds six to eight weeks earlier, between March 19 and April 2.

From the last set-out day to the early first frost on September 29 is 131 days. NC State Extension gives 75 to 85 days, and the longer figure still fits with 46 days to spare.

The weather station behind these dates

4.7 miles north-west of the city's internal point, the station is close but not on top of Lincoln.

NOAA lists it at about 1,200 feet, higher than 74 and lower than 25 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 Lincoln 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.

Nearby cities and their frost dates

The nearest city on these pages is Omaha, NE, 45 miles away, and the other two below are farther out, so these are regional comparisons, not neighbors.

• Omaha, NE lies 45 miles north-east of Lincoln. Typical last frost April 16, first frost October 18, 183 days between; spring frost ends 8 days sooner than in Lincoln, and the frost-free season is 12 days longer than Lincoln's.
• Kansas City, MO, 162 miles to the south-east: last frost April 4, first frost November 2, 211 days frost-free; the last frost is 20 days earlier than in Lincoln, and it has 40 days more without frost.
• Des Moines, IA lies 168 miles east of Lincoln. Typical last frost April 18, first frost October 20, 184 days between; spring frost ends 6 days sooner than in Lincoln, and the season runs 13 days longer.

Put the frost dates to work

Start with the spring planting planner for the whole crop list counted from these dates, and the fall planting planner for the last planting days. The frost dates tool shows every level of risk at this station, and the hardiness zone lookup covers winter survival for shrubs and perennials.

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

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. The Census Bureau's 2024 Gazetteer places Lincoln on the map, and its Vintage 2024 estimates, 300,619 people here, decide which cities get a page.

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. Our methodology describes the tests behind every number.

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