Little Rock, Arkansas: freeze dates & growing season

Three different things get called “Little Rock” here, so this page is explicit about all three: the metro label (Little Rock), the anchor geography (Census ZCTA 72201, a downtown ZIP-code area), and the climate record (the NOAA station below). Windows are calculated from the station — not from your street address.

Climate basis: NOAA station Little Rock AP Adams Fld, AR (USW00013963), 3 mi (4 km) from the ZCTA 72201 centroid, elevation 258 ft, on the 1991–2020 climate normals.

Last spring freezeMarch 211-in-10 after Apr 6

First fall freezeNovember 101-in-10 before Oct 29

Frost-free season≈ 234 daysmedian at 32°F

Hard freeze, 28°Mar 8 – Nov 21kills even hardy greens

USDA zone8a10 to 15°F winter low — not frost timing

The year

indoors under lights
in the garden
frost-free season
1-in-10 years still freeze to Apr 6

The Little Rock year: hatched areas are the freeze-likely seasons in 1991–2020 normals.

What that means in practice

Tomatoes: plant March 28 – April 11
Peas: plant February 7 – February 21
Garlic: plant cloves November 17 – November 24

All 79 crops in Little Rock

These windows describe typical years (1991–2020 climate normals), not this year's forecast. Freezes happen outside them — especially in frost pockets, valleys, and urban edges. Watch the forecast before committing tender plants.

Check a specific ZIP instead

Metro climates vary — elevation, water, and urban heat shift freeze dates by days to weeks. Look up your exact ZIP:

Nearby reviewed metros

Memphis, TN · Tulsa, OK · St. Louis, MO · Dallas, TX · Oklahoma City, OK