When to plant in Ishpeming, MI

Planting dates worked out from Ishpeming's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.

Last spring frost

Early · riskyMay 109 years in 10 still get a later frost
TypicalMay 24about half of years get a later frost
Safe to plant outJun 41 year in 10 gets a later frost

Hardy crops like peas and spinach are timed from the typical date. Wait for the safe date before planting out tomatoes, peppers and squash.

First fall frost

EarlySep 111 year in 10 has frost by then
TypicalSep 26about half of years have had frost
LateOct 99 years in 10 have had frost by then

A typical year has 124 frost-free days. Plan for tender crops to be ripe by the early date.

Station used: Marquette · 10.3 km away · station 465 m, town 429 m. How we match towns to stations

This season

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Planting dates for common crops

Crop	Start indoors	Plant out or sow	Harvest from
Tomato	Apr 9 – Apr 23	Jun 4 – Jun 18	Jul 29
Sweet pepper	Mar 26 – Apr 9	Jun 4 – Jun 18	Aug 3
Lettuce (leaf)	Mar 25 – Apr 1	Apr 29 – May 13	Jun 8
Peas	—	Apr 29 – May 27	Jun 23
Bush beans	—	May 28 – Jun 18	Jul 17
Carrot	—	May 8 – Jun 19	Jul 7
Beet	—	May 8 – Jun 19	Jun 27
Potato	—	May 8 – May 29	Jul 17
Kale	Mar 25 – Apr 8	May 6 – May 20	Jun 18
Broccoli	Mar 18 – Apr 1	Apr 29 – May 20	Jun 28
Cucumber	May 7 – May 14	Jun 4 – Jun 18	Jul 24
Summer squash and zucchini	May 7 – May 14	Jun 4 – Jun 18	Jul 19
Winter squash	May 7 – May 14	Jun 4 – Jun 18	Aug 23
Sweet corn	—	May 28 – Jun 18	Jul 27
Onion (from sets)	—	Apr 29 – May 20	Jul 28
Garlic	—	Sep 12 – Oct 10 (fall)	following summer
Spinach	—	Apr 29 – May 27	Jun 6
Basil	Apr 23 – May 7	Jun 4 – Jun 18	Jul 31

Plan all 65 crops for Ishpeming

Ishpeming'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
1962	Jun 13
1963	May 24
1964	Jun 16
1965	Jun 15
1966	Jun 9
1967	May 22
1968	May 22
1969	Jun 4
1970	Jun 20
1971	Jun 9
1972	Jun 17
1973	May 30
1974	May 27
1975	May 16
1976	May 26
1977	Jun 9
1978	Jun 14
1979	May 22
1980	Jun 8
1981	May 31
1982	Jun 3
1983	May 28
1984	May 27
1985	May 21
1986	Jun 17
1987	Jun 4
1988	May 25
1989	Jun 5
1990	Jun 4
1991	May 19
1992	Jun 22
1993	Jun 4
1994	Jun 3
1995	May 6
1996	May 30
1997	May 22
1998	Jun 5
1999	May 14
2000	May 2
2001	May 5
2002	May 25
2003	May 21
2004	May 28
2005	May 17
2006	May 23
2007	May 21
2008	May 28
2009	Jun 6
2010	May 10
2011	May 27
2012	May 31
2013	Jun 3
2014	May 17
2015	Jun 1
2016	May 18
2017	May 20
2018	May 12
2019	Jun 3
2020	May 16
2021	May 29
2022	May 23
2023	May 25
2024	May 10

Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend

See the data as a table

Year	Frost-free days
1962	83
1963	111
1964	87
1965	87
1966	95
1967	109
1968	87
1969	130
1970	99
1971	106
1972	77
1973	109
1974	113
1975	115
1976	95
1977	115
1978	99
1979	123
1980	110
1981	112
1982	95
1983	117
1984	100
1985	114
1986	81
1987	119
1988	129
1989	109
1990	124
1991	122
1992	80
1993	105
1994	120
1995	126
1996	121
1997	144
1998	119
1999	129
2000	145
2001	152
2002	134
2003	130
2004	123
2005	143
2006	109
2007	116
2008	127
2009	115
2010	132
2011	110
2012	110
2013	132
2014	140
2015	119
2016	147
2017	111
2018	139
2019	122
2020	124
2021	141
2022	122
2023	138
2024	151

Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend

See the data as a table

Year	Growing-season temperature
1962	11.7 °C
1963	12.6 °C
1964	12.6 °C
1965	11.6 °C
1966	12.2 °C
1967	11.7 °C
1968	12.6 °C
1969	12.7 °C
1970	13.0 °C
1971	12.3 °C
1972	11.7 °C
1973	12.6 °C
1974	11.5 °C
1975	12.9 °C
1976	13.1 °C
1977	13.6 °C
1978	12.7 °C
1979	11.9 °C
1980	13.2 °C
1981	12.6 °C
1982	12.0 °C
1983	13.2 °C
1984	13.0 °C
1985	12.7 °C
1986	13.1 °C
1987	14.6 °C
1988	14.1 °C
1989	12.7 °C
1990	12.8 °C
1991	14.0 °C
1992	11.4 °C
1993	12.2 °C
1994	13.0 °C
1995	13.4 °C
1996	12.2 °C
1997	12.3 °C
1998	14.3 °C
1999	14.0 °C
2000	12.6 °C
2001	14.0 °C
2002	13.6 °C
2003	13.1 °C
2004	12.4 °C
2005	14.7 °C
2006	14.1 °C
2007	14.0 °C
2008	12.7 °C
2009	12.2 °C
2010	14.4 °C
2011	13.5 °C
2012	14.2 °C
2013	12.5 °C
2014	12.3 °C
2015	13.6 °C
2016	13.5 °C
2017	12.8 °C
2018	13.1 °C
2019	12.4 °C
2020	12.8 °C
2021	14.4 °C
2022	13.8 °C
2023	13.7 °C
2024	14.3 °C

What this means for you: Since 1962, Ishpeming's last spring frost has come about 3 days earlier per decade, on average. The frost-free season has grown by about 6 days per decade. Year-to-year swings are large, so keep using the safe date rather than the trend.

Source: daily records from Marquette (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.

Nearby towns

West Ishpeming Negaunee Trowbridge Park Marquette Harvey Gwinn