When to plant in Herald Harbor, MD
Planting dates worked out from Herald Harbor's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.
Safe to plant out
Apr 5
1 year in 10 has a later frost
Average last frost
Mar 22
about a 50% chance of a later one
Average first fall frost
Nov 22
1 year in 10 by Nov 10
Frost-free days
248
median, 1991–2020
Station used: Annapolis Us Naval Academy Aso · 9.8 km away · station 2 m, town 15 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 | Feb 11 – Feb 25 | Apr 8 – Apr 22 | Jun 2 |
| Sweet pepper | Jan 28 – Feb 11 | Apr 8 – Apr 22 | Jun 7 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Jan 30 – Feb 6 | Mar 6 – Mar 20 | Apr 15 |
| Peas | — | Mar 6 – Apr 3 | Apr 30 |
| Bush beans | — | Apr 4 – Apr 25 | May 24 |
| Carrot | — | Mar 19 – Apr 30 | May 18 |
| Beet | — | Mar 19 – Apr 30 | May 8 |
| Potato | — | Mar 19 – Apr 9 | May 28 |
| Kale | Jan 30 – Feb 13 | Mar 13 – Mar 27 | Apr 25 |
| Broccoli | Jan 23 – Feb 6 | Mar 6 – Mar 27 | May 5 |
| Cucumber | Mar 11 – Mar 18 | Apr 8 – Apr 22 | May 28 |
| Summer squash and zucchini | Mar 11 – Mar 18 | Apr 8 – Apr 22 | May 23 |
| Winter squash | Mar 11 – Mar 18 | Apr 8 – Apr 22 | Jun 27 |
| Sweet corn | — | Apr 4 – Apr 25 | Jun 3 |
| Onion (from sets) | — | Mar 6 – Mar 27 | Jun 4 |
| Garlic | — | Oct 31 – Nov 28 (fall) | following summer |
| Spinach | — | Mar 6 – Apr 3 | Apr 13 |
| Basil | Feb 25 – Mar 11 | Apr 8 – Apr 22 | Jun 4 |
Herald Harbor'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 |
|---|---|
| 1945 | Mar 5 |
| 1946 | Mar 1 |
| 1947 | Mar 31 |
| 1948 | Mar 29 |
| 1949 | Mar 20 |
| 1950 | Apr 15 |
| 1951 | Mar 26 |
| 1952 | Mar 25 |
| 1953 | Mar 11 |
| 1954 | Apr 4 |
| 1955 | Mar 29 |
| 1956 | Mar 25 |
| 1957 | Apr 13 |
| 1958 | Mar 20 |
| 1959 | Mar 29 |
| 1960 | Mar 26 |
| 1961 | Mar 18 |
| 2002 | Mar 23 |
| 2003 | Apr 1 |
| 2004 | Mar 23 |
| 2005 | Mar 18 |
| 2006 | Mar 21 |
| 2007 | Apr 9 |
| 2008 | Mar 10 |
| 2009 | Mar 25 |
| 2010 | Feb 27 |
| 2011 | Mar 27 |
| 2012 | Mar 6 |
| 2013 | Apr 4 |
| 2014 | Mar 27 |
| 2015 | Mar 29 |
| 2016 | Apr 10 |
| 2017 | Mar 23 |
| 2018 | Mar 17 |
| 2019 | Mar 7 |
| 2020 | Mar 8 |
| 2021 | Mar 21 |
| 2022 | Mar 29 |
| 2023 | Mar 20 |
| 2024 | Mar 1 |
Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Frost-free days |
|---|---|
| 1945 | 262 |
| 1946 | 275 |
| 1947 | 231 |
| 1948 | 255 |
| 1949 | 246 |
| 1950 | 210 |
| 1951 | 221 |
| 1952 | 209 |
| 1953 | 239 |
| 1954 | 241 |
| 1955 | 241 |
| 1956 | 241 |
| 1957 | 211 |
| 1958 | 232 |
| 1959 | 232 |
| 1960 | 226 |
| 1961 | 237 |
| 2002 | 248 |
| 2003 | 222 |
| 2004 | 255 |
| 2005 | 243 |
| 2006 | 227 |
| 2007 | 228 |
| 2008 | 253 |
| 2009 | 255 |
| 2010 | 274 |
| 2011 | 259 |
| 2012 | 264 |
| 2013 | 222 |
| 2014 | 232 |
| 2015 | 251 |
| 2016 | 226 |
| 2017 | 231 |
| 2018 | 249 |
| 2019 | 246 |
| 2020 | 255 |
| 2021 | 243 |
| 2023 | 252 |
| 2024 | 272 |
Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Growing-season temperature |
|---|---|
| 1945 | 20.6 °C |
| 1946 | 19.8 °C |
| 1947 | 20.0 °C |
| 1948 | 20.1 °C |
| 1949 | 20.5 °C |
| 1950 | 18.9 °C |
| 1951 | 20.4 °C |
| 1952 | 21.2 °C |
| 1953 | 21.1 °C |
| 1954 | 20.9 °C |
| 1955 | 21.4 °C |
| 1956 | 19.6 °C |
| 1957 | 21.1 °C |
| 1958 | 20.2 °C |
| 1959 | 21.9 °C |
| 1960 | 21.0 °C |
| 1961 | 20.5 °C |
| 2002 | 21.6 °C |
| 2003 | 20.2 °C |
| 2004 | 21.5 °C |
| 2005 | 21.4 °C |
| 2006 | 21.2 °C |
| 2007 | 21.0 °C |
| 2008 | 21.5 °C |
| 2009 | 20.8 °C |
| 2010 | 22.5 °C |
| 2011 | 22.5 °C |
| 2012 | 22.9 °C |
| 2013 | 20.8 °C |
| 2014 | 20.6 °C |
| 2015 | 21.7 °C |
| 2016 | 21.6 °C |
| 2017 | 22.1 °C |
| 2018 | 23.0 °C |
| 2019 | 23.9 °C |
| 2020 | 21.0 °C |
| 2021 | 21.6 °C |
| 2022 | 21.5 °C |
| 2023 | 21.2 °C |
| 2024 | 22.0 °C |
What this means for you: Since 1945, Herald Harbor's last spring frost has stayed at about the same time of year. The frost-free season has grown 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 Annapolis Us Naval Academy Aso (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.