When to plant in King Cove, AK
Planting dates worked out from King Cove's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.
Safe to plant out
Jun 14
1 year in 10 has a later frost
Average last frost
May 28
about a 50% chance of a later one
Average first fall frost
Oct 1
1 year in 10 by Sep 13
Frost-free days
124
median, 1991–2020
Station used: Cold Bay Ap · 31.7 km away · station 22 m, town 23 m. How we match towns to stations
This season
Plan your garden.
Planting dates for common crops
| Crop | Start indoors | Plant out or sow | Harvest from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato Summers too cool |
— | — | — |
| Sweet pepper Summers too cool |
— | — | — |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Apr 19 – Apr 26 | May 24 – Jun 7 | Jul 3 |
| Peas | — | May 24 – Jun 21 | Jul 18 |
| Bush beans Season likely too short |
— | Jul 19 – Aug 9 | Sep 7 |
| Carrot | — | Jun 12 – Jul 24 | Aug 11 |
| Beet | — | Jun 12 – Jul 24 | Aug 1 |
| Potato | — | Jun 12 – Jul 3 | Aug 21 |
| Kale | Apr 19 – May 3 | May 31 – Jun 14 | Jul 13 |
| Broccoli | Apr 12 – Apr 26 | May 24 – Jun 14 | Jul 23 |
| Cucumber Summers too cool |
— | — | — |
| Summer squash and zucchini Summers too cool |
— | — | — |
| Winter squash Summers too cool |
— | — | — |
| Sweet corn Season likely too short |
— | Jul 19 – Aug 9 | Sep 17 |
| Onion (from sets) | — | May 24 – Jun 14 | Aug 22 |
| Garlic | — | Aug 25 – Sep 22 (fall) | following summer |
| Spinach | — | May 24 – Jun 21 | Jul 1 |
| Basil Summers too cool |
— | — | — |
King Cove's weather over time
How the growing season has shifted here, year by year, from the station's own records.
Each year's last spring frostLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Last spring frost |
|---|---|
| 1950 | May 22 |
| 1951 | May 25 |
| 1952 | Jun 5 |
| 1953 | May 14 |
| 1954 | May 22 |
| 1955 | May 24 |
| 1956 | May 15 |
| 1957 | May 20 |
| 1958 | May 17 |
| 1959 | May 17 |
| 1960 | Jun 3 |
| 1961 | May 12 |
| 1962 | Jun 6 |
| 1963 | May 24 |
| 1964 | May 28 |
| 1965 | May 23 |
| 1966 | May 24 |
| 1967 | May 19 |
| 1968 | May 11 |
| 1969 | May 15 |
| 1970 | May 13 |
| 1971 | May 31 |
| 1972 | Jun 14 |
| 1973 | Jun 22 |
| 1974 | May 20 |
| 1975 | May 23 |
| 1976 | Jun 12 |
| 1977 | May 23 |
| 1978 | May 24 |
| 1979 | May 12 |
| 1980 | May 8 |
| 1981 | May 5 |
| 1982 | May 17 |
| 1983 | May 7 |
| 1984 | May 23 |
| 1985 | Jun 15 |
| 1986 | May 28 |
| 1987 | Jun 2 |
| 1988 | May 21 |
| 1989 | May 16 |
| 1990 | May 10 |
| 1991 | May 21 |
| 1992 | May 21 |
| 1993 | May 9 |
| 1994 | May 11 |
| 1995 | May 30 |
| 1996 | Jun 13 |
| 1997 | May 31 |
| 1998 | May 24 |
| 1999 | Jun 9 |
| 2000 | Jun 5 |
| 2001 | Jun 16 |
| 2002 | May 15 |
| 2003 | May 16 |
| 2004 | May 8 |
| 2005 | May 23 |
| 2006 | Jun 22 |
| 2007 | Jun 4 |
| 2008 | May 15 |
| 2009 | Jun 29 |
| 2010 | Jun 4 |
| 2011 | May 12 |
| 2012 | Jun 6 |
| 2013 | May 19 |
| 2014 | Jun 2 |
| 2015 | May 3 |
| 2016 | Jun 14 |
| 2017 | Jun 13 |
| 2018 | Jun 10 |
| 2019 | May 17 |
| 2020 | May 28 |
| 2021 | May 18 |
| 2022 | Jun 15 |
| 2023 | May 25 |
| 2024 | Jun 6 |
Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Frost-free days |
|---|---|
| 1950 | 151 |
| 1951 | 126 |
| 1952 | 107 |
| 1954 | 127 |
| 1955 | 135 |
| 1956 | 129 |
| 1957 | 133 |
| 1958 | 153 |
| 1959 | 139 |
| 1960 | 128 |
| 1961 | 143 |
| 1962 | 136 |
| 1963 | 123 |
| 1964 | 128 |
| 1965 | 129 |
| 1966 | 115 |
| 1967 | 108 |
| 1968 | 122 |
| 1969 | 146 |
| 1970 | 130 |
| 1971 | 101 |
| 1972 | 95 |
| 1973 | 111 |
| 1974 | 142 |
| 1975 | 144 |
| 1976 | 107 |
| 1977 | 138 |
| 1978 | 131 |
| 1979 | 133 |
| 1980 | 152 |
| 1981 | 155 |
| 1982 | 141 |
| 1983 | 157 |
| 1984 | 139 |
| 1985 | 109 |
| 1986 | 142 |
| 1987 | 141 |
| 1988 | 127 |
| 1989 | 165 |
| 1990 | 134 |
| 1991 | 138 |
| 1992 | 121 |
| 1993 | 147 |
| 1994 | 149 |
| 1995 | 125 |
| 1996 | 114 |
| 1997 | 111 |
| 1998 | 143 |
| 1999 | 79 |
| 2000 | 111 |
| 2001 | 107 |
| 2002 | 138 |
| 2003 | 124 |
| 2004 | 128 |
| 2005 | 131 |
| 2006 | 93 |
| 2007 | 127 |
| 2008 | 133 |
| 2009 | 116 |
| 2010 | 113 |
| 2011 | 152 |
| 2012 | 91 |
| 2013 | 165 |
| 2014 | 113 |
| 2015 | 162 |
| 2016 | 124 |
| 2017 | 97 |
| 2018 | 140 |
| 2019 | 141 |
| 2020 | 98 |
| 2021 | 125 |
| 2022 | 63 |
| 2023 | 124 |
| 2024 | 132 |
Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Growing-season temperature |
|---|---|
| 1950 | 6.8 °C |
| 1951 | 7.3 °C |
| 1952 | 5.8 °C |
| 1953 | 7.5 °C |
| 1955 | 6.2 °C |
| 1956 | 6.4 °C |
| 1957 | 7.9 °C |
| 1958 | 7.3 °C |
| 1959 | 6.5 °C |
| 1960 | 6.3 °C |
| 1961 | 7.0 °C |
| 1962 | 6.8 °C |
| 1963 | 7.2 °C |
| 1964 | 6.4 °C |
| 1965 | 6.6 °C |
| 1966 | 6.1 °C |
| 1967 | 7.9 °C |
| 1968 | 7.6 °C |
| 1969 | 8.2 °C |
| 1970 | 7.1 °C |
| 1971 | 4.8 °C |
| 1972 | 6.0 °C |
| 1973 | 5.7 °C |
| 1974 | 7.4 °C |
| 1975 | 6.9 °C |
| 1976 | 5.8 °C |
| 1977 | 8.0 °C |
| 1978 | 8.0 °C |
| 1979 | 8.9 °C |
| 1980 | 7.7 °C |
| 1981 | 8.5 °C |
| 1982 | 6.0 °C |
| 1983 | 8.0 °C |
| 1984 | 7.3 °C |
| 1985 | 6.1 °C |
| 1986 | 7.0 °C |
| 1987 | 7.1 °C |
| 1988 | 6.9 °C |
| 1989 | 7.7 °C |
| 1990 | 7.7 °C |
| 1991 | 7.5 °C |
| 1992 | 7.0 °C |
| 1993 | 8.2 °C |
| 1994 | 7.2 °C |
| 1995 | 7.3 °C |
| 1996 | 7.5 °C |
| 1997 | 8.5 °C |
| 1998 | 7.6 °C |
| 1999 | 6.5 °C |
| 2000 | 7.0 °C |
| 2001 | 7.4 °C |
| 2002 | 8.4 °C |
| 2003 | 8.2 °C |
| 2004 | 8.3 °C |
| 2005 | 8.1 °C |
| 2006 | 7.0 °C |
| 2007 | 7.3 °C |
| 2008 | 6.6 °C |
| 2009 | 7.1 °C |
| 2010 | 6.7 °C |
| 2011 | 7.0 °C |
| 2012 | 5.9 °C |
| 2013 | 8.0 °C |
| 2014 | 9.7 °C |
| 2015 | 8.2 °C |
| 2016 | 9.6 °C |
| 2017 | 8.0 °C |
| 2018 | 8.5 °C |
| 2019 | 9.7 °C |
| 2020 | 8.8 °C |
| 2021 | 8.4 °C |
| 2022 | 7.8 °C |
| 2023 | 7.8 °C |
| 2024 | 7.5 °C |
What this means for you: Since 1950, King Cove's last spring frost has come about 1 day later per decade, on average. The frost-free season has shrunk by about 2 days per decade. Year-to-year swings are large, so keep using the safe date rather than the trend.
Source: daily records from Cold Bay Ap (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.