Venice Frost Dates and Growing Season

NOAA 1991-2020 normals for Venice, 1.7 km from Venice, elevation 8 ft

Frost and the growing season

NOAA's 1991-2020 freeze probabilities for Venice. A median date has an even chance of a later freeze in spring, or an earlier one in fall.

A freeze (32°F or colder) happens in only 40 percent of years at Venice, so there is no typical freeze season.

Median at 36°F: last January 31, first January 9
Median at 32°F: last January 25, first January 19

Last freeze in spring

The chance of a later freeze than the date shown. At 10 percent, one spring in ten still freezes after the date; planting after the 10 percent date for 32°F is the cautious choice.

Threshold	10%	20%	30%	40%	50%	60%	70%	80%	90%
36°F	Mar 3	Feb 20	Feb 11	Feb 5	Jan 31	Jan 26	Jan 19	Jan 11	Jan 5
32°F	Feb 15	Feb 7	Feb 2	Jan 30	Jan 25	Jan 20	Jan 12	Jan 7	Jan 3
28°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
24°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
20°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
16°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

First freeze in fall

The chance of an earlier freeze than the date shown. At 10 percent, one fall in ten freezes before the date.

Threshold	10%	20%	30%	40%	50%	60%	70%	80%	90%
36°F	Dec 19	Dec 27	Jan 1	Jan 5	Jan 9	Jan 14	Jan 20	Jan 26	Feb 3
32°F	Dec 28	Jan 4	Jan 8	Jan 11	Jan 19	Jan 24	Jan 29	Feb 3	Feb 11
28°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
24°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
20°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
16°F	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

Growing season length

Days between the last spring and first fall freeze at each threshold, with the chance of a season at least that long.

Threshold	10%	20%	30%	40%	50%	60%	70%	80%	90%
36°F	365	363	354	344	336	330	323	314	303
32°F	365	365	365	365	365	365	355	340	331
28°F	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365
24°F	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365
20°F	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365
16°F	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365	365

How often it gets that cold

The share of years with at least one night at or below each temperature.

36°F or colder: 81% of years
32°F or colder: 40% of years
28°F or colder: 8% of years
24°F or colder: 0% of years
20°F or colder: 0% of years
16°F or colder: 0% of years

Degree days

A degree day is one degree of the daily mean temperature beyond a base, for one day. Heating degree days count cold (the fuel a house burns), cooling degree days heat, growing degree days the warmth a crop needs; each crop has its own base.

Heating degree days, base 65°F: 418
Cooling degree days, base 65°F: 3,621
Growing degree days, base 40°F: 12,328
Growing degree days, base 45°F: 10,506
Growing degree days, base 50°F: 8,693
Growing degree days, base 55°F: 6,910
Growing degree days, base 60°F: 5,202

Growing degree days by month, base 50°F

Heating and cooling by month

Month	Heating DD	Cooling DD	Growing DD 50
January	147	55	381
February	86	75	411
March	47	130	549
April	7	232	675
May	0	389	854
June	0	492	942
July	0	555	1,020
August	0	561	1,026
September	0	498	948
October	3	365	826
November	27	173	596
December	101	97	465

What this means

NOAA computes these from the daily lows at the station over 1991-2020, fitting the dates of each year's last and first freeze to a distribution, so a date can be stated at any level of risk. 36°F is a frost risk for tender plants on a clear, calm night, since the ground cools below the air above it; 32°F is a freeze; 28°F is a hard freeze that kills most annuals.

The station is 1.7 km from Venice. Low ground, valleys and open fields freeze earlier and later than a town center or a hillside.

Sources

NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991-2020, annual and seasonal normals for station USC00089176 (Venice). Public domain.