Frost Danger Passes In The Heights, Making Gardening Safe

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — The right time to start planting seeds outside varies by year, and even more so by region. But an Old Farmer’s Almanac tool can help gardeners in Cleveland Heights plan ahead by finding the typical date of the final spring frost.

The average final spring frost date in Cleveland Heights is April 13. This opens up a 205-day growing season, as the typical first frost date in the fall is Nov. 4.

There’s a 30 percent probability of frost occurring after May 1, as the date is determined using National Oceanic and Atmospheric historical data from 1981-2010, and is not “set in stone,” the Old Farmer’s Almanac said.

April 13 represents the average date of the final “light freeze” in Cleveland Heights. A “light freeze,” according to the almanac, occurs when the temperature dips between 29 and 32 degrees Fahrenheit, at which point tender plants can be killed. A “moderate freeze,” between 25 and 28 degrees, is destructive to most vegetation, and a “severe freeze” at anything under 24 degrees can do heavy damage to most garden plants, according to the almanac.

As the pandemic’s second gardening season gets underway in Cleveland Heights, the Old Farmer's Almanac has another tool to help gardeners decide when to plant which crops.

In Cleveland Heights, the tool shows it’s usually best to start planting green beans before May 11, and okra should be started between May 14 and May 28.