When to plant in Smithfield, VA
Planting dates worked out from Smithfield's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.
Safe to plant out
Apr 10
1 year in 10 has a later frost
Average last frost
Mar 30
about a 50% chance of a later one
Average first fall frost
Nov 8
1 year in 10 by Oct 29
Frost-free days
219
median, 1991–2020
Station used: Newport News Intl Ap · 20.6 km away · station 11 m, town 9 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 13 – Feb 27 | Apr 10 – Apr 24 | Jun 4 |
| Sweet pepper | Jan 30 – Feb 13 | Apr 10 – Apr 24 | Jun 9 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Jan 26 – Feb 2 | Mar 2 – Mar 16 | Apr 11 |
| Peas | — | Feb 16 – Mar 16 | Apr 12 |
| Bush beans | — | Apr 3 – Apr 24 | May 23 |
| Carrot | — | Mar 9 – Apr 20 | May 8 |
| Beet | — | Mar 5 – Apr 16 | Apr 24 |
| Potato | — | Mar 9 – Mar 30 | May 18 |
| Kale | Jan 19 – Feb 2 | Mar 2 – Mar 16 | Apr 14 |
| Broccoli | Jan 19 – Feb 2 | Mar 2 – Mar 23 | May 1 |
| Cucumber | Mar 13 – Mar 20 | Apr 10 – Apr 24 | May 30 |
| Summer squash and zucchini | Mar 13 – Mar 20 | Apr 10 – Apr 24 | May 25 |
| Winter squash | Mar 13 – Mar 20 | Apr 10 – Apr 24 | Jun 29 |
| Sweet corn | — | Apr 3 – Apr 24 | Jun 2 |
| Onion (from sets) | — | Mar 2 – Mar 23 | May 31 |
| Garlic | — | Oct 25 – Nov 22 (fall) | following summer |
| Spinach | — | Feb 16 – Mar 16 | Mar 26 |
| Basil | Feb 27 – Mar 13 | Apr 10 – Apr 24 | Jun 6 |
Smithfield'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 |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Apr 19 |
| 2002 | Apr 7 |
| 2003 | Mar 31 |
| 2004 | Mar 24 |
| 2005 | Mar 18 |
| 2006 | Apr 10 |
| 2007 | Apr 10 |
| 2008 | Mar 24 |
| 2010 | Mar 9 |
| 2011 | Apr 6 |
| 2012 | Mar 11 |
| 2013 | Mar 23 |
| 2014 | Mar 27 |
| 2015 | Mar 29 |
| 2016 | Apr 10 |
| 2017 | Apr 8 |
| 2018 | Apr 11 |
| 2019 | Mar 28 |
| 2020 | Mar 8 |
| 2021 | Apr 23 |
| 2022 | Apr 20 |
| 2023 | Apr 11 |
| 2024 | Mar 1 |
Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Frost-free days |
|---|---|
| 2001 | 171 |
| 2002 | 206 |
| 2003 | 206 |
| 2004 | 230 |
| 2005 | 225 |
| 2006 | 208 |
| 2007 | 210 |
| 2008 | 219 |
| 2010 | 243 |
| 2011 | 219 |
| 2012 | 258 |
| 2013 | 230 |
| 2014 | 220 |
| 2015 | 230 |
| 2016 | 215 |
| 2017 | 216 |
| 2018 | 213 |
| 2019 | 225 |
| 2020 | 254 |
| 2021 | 204 |
| 2022 | 207 |
| 2023 | 204 |
| 2024 | 270 |
Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Growing-season temperature |
|---|---|
| 2001 | 20.6 °C |
| 2002 | 21.9 °C |
| 2003 | 20.9 °C |
| 2004 | 22.4 °C |
| 2005 | 23.1 °C |
| 2006 | 22.4 °C |
| 2007 | 21.7 °C |
| 2008 | 22.5 °C |
| 2009 | 23.2 °C |
| 2010 | 23.7 °C |
| 2011 | 22.8 °C |
| 2012 | 22.1 °C |
| 2013 | 23.0 °C |
| 2014 | 23.4 °C |
| 2015 | 23.4 °C |
| 2016 | 22.2 °C |
| 2017 | 22.5 °C |
| 2018 | 23.1 °C |
| 2019 | 23.5 °C |
| 2020 | 22.9 °C |
| 2021 | 21.3 °C |
| 2022 | 21.5 °C |
| 2023 | 21.2 °C |
| 2024 | 22.0 °C |
What this means for you: This station's record is too short to show a reliable trend yet.
Source: daily records from Newport News Intl Ap (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.