Tallahassee, FL Frost Dates: Last Spring and First Fall Frost

Frost leaves Tallahassee on March 11 and comes back on November 21 when the odds are even, a window of 255 days for tender plants.

Dates at even odds leave half of all years unprotected. The safer pair for Tallahassee is March 30 in spring, which only one year in ten passes, and November 3 in fall, which one year in ten arrives before. Tallahassee's season is 26 days longer than the 229 days median across the 100 cities on these pages, which puts it 35th for season length.

Behind every date on this page is one weather station, Tallahassee (NOAA USW00093805), 6.0 miles south-west of Tallahassee's internal point in the Census Bureau's files and about 60 feet up.

Tallahassee's last spring frost, by chance

Frost is still possible on February 18 in nine springs out of ten and on March 11 in five; only one spring in ten sees a freeze as late as March 30.

The earliest and latest of these dates are 40 days apart, wider than for most of the 100 cities here. A freeze can still come 19 days after the typical date in Tallahassee, which is why the late date matters more here than in most places.

Tallahassee's first fall frost, by chance

In Tallahassee the first freeze has arrived by November 3 in one fall out of ten, by November 21 in five, and by December 14 in nine.

The fall dates spread over 41 days, wider than for most cities on these pages. One year in ten brings the first freeze 18 days ahead of the typical date.

The growing season in Tallahassee

That is longer than most places on these pages, though not by enough to change which crops you can grow. Season length swings more here than in most of the 100 cities: 255 days in a typical year, 226 days in a short one, a difference of 29 days.

The season lengths come from NOAA's simulated years, not from subtracting one typical date from the other, so the two will not match to the day. At Tallahassee a night at or below 32°F turns up in 100% of years, which means these dates apply every winter.

Hard freeze dates for Tallahassee

A wide gap separates 32°F from 28°F here: the typical hard freeze arrives 15 days after the first frost in fall (December 6) and leaves 14 days before the last in spring (February 25). Frost-tolerant crops get a long extension at both ends. The late 28°F spring date, March 17, is the one that still catches blooms and young transplants one year in ten, and the early fall date, November 15, is when a hard freeze has arrived in one fall out of ten.

Planting dates for Tallahassee, counted from the frost dates

In Tallahassee the University of New Hampshire Extension count lands like this, measured from the typical last frost on March 11: lettuce from February 11 to February 18, cabbage on February 11, seed potatoes from February 25 to March 4, then peppers on March 25 and beans from March 11. 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 19 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 Tallahassee 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. Of the crops that fit, collard greens is the slowest: 118 days from planting to the early frost, which makes July 8 its last day.

Worked example: the last day for fall broccoli in Tallahassee

Take fall broccoli in Tallahassee. 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 21, the last planting day is August 15. Counting back from the early date, November 3, it is July 28.

The two answers are 18 days apart, a wide enough gap that the early date is the safer one to follow in Tallahassee.

Spring is the other end of the same arithmetic: University of New Hampshire Extension sets cabbage-family transplants out two to four weeks before the last frost, which from March 11 puts cabbage out on February 11.

About the Tallahassee station

The nearest usable station stands 6.0 miles south-west of Tallahassee's internal point, near the city but not in it.

NOAA lists it at about 60 feet, higher than 16 and lower than 83 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 Tallahassee 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.

Tallahassee compared with nearby cities

Of the cities on these pages, Columbus, GA is closest to Tallahassee at 147 miles, with two more farther out; none is a close neighbor.

• Columbus, GA lies 147 miles north of Tallahassee. Typical last frost March 21, first frost November 11, 238 days between; spring frost lingers 10 days longer than in Tallahassee, and the frost-free season is 17 days shorter than Tallahassee's.
• Jacksonville, FL, 155 miles to the east: last frost February 1, first frost January 5, 330 days frost-free; the last frost is 38 days earlier than in Tallahassee, and the frost-free season is 75 days longer than Tallahassee's.
• Atlanta, GA lies 229 miles north of Tallahassee. Typical last frost March 24, first frost November 8, 231 days between; the last frost is 13 days later than in Tallahassee, and the frost-free season is 24 days shorter than Tallahassee's.

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.

Every city covered is on the city frost dates index, sorted by state.

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 Tallahassee at 205,089 people.

University of New Hampshire Extension, NC State Extension and University of Georgia Extension supply the planting rules; this page only counts them from the station's dates. Our methodology describes the tests behind every number.

Frost dates are long-term odds, not a forecast. Before you plant, check the local forecast for the coming week, and keep row cover or old sheets handy for the nights the odds get wrong.