Frost dates in Queenstown: last spring frost and first autumn frost
When is it safe to plant out in Queenstown, and when does the first frost come? Dates from 45 years of nightly minimum temperatures (1981–2025), with how early or late they can fall.
Frost dates in Queenstown and how sure they are
| Early year (1 in 10) | Typical (median) | Late year (1 in 10) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last spring frost | 14 August | 15 September | 18 October |
| First autumn frost | 12 May | 5 June | 28 June |
In a typical year the last frost in Queenstown falls around 15 September and the first one around 5 June, leaving about 265 frost-free days (between 223 and 353 in 8 years out of 10). To be safe, plant tender crops after 18 October: by then the last frost has passed in 9 years out of 10. Bring them in before 12 May: in 1 year in 10 the first frost comes earlier.
Southern hemisphere: the frost season is the austral winter, so the last spring frost comes around August–October and the first autumn frost around April–June.
In 4 of the 45 years Queenstown had no spring frost at all; those years are left out of the spring dates.
Frost month by month in Queenstown
| Month | Average low | Coldest night (avg) | Record low | Frost nights | Years with frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10 °C | 4.8 °C | 2.7 °C | 0 | 0% |
| February | 10.1 °C | 4.7 °C | 2.4 °C | 0 | 0% |
| March | 8.5 °C | 3.2 °C | 0.1 °C | 0 | 0% |
| April | 6.3 °C | 1.7 °C | -1.2 °C | 0.1 | 7% |
| May | 4.5 °C | 0.2 °C | -7.8 °C | 1 | 36% |
| June | 2.4 °C | -2.1 °C | -7.9 °C | 5.1 | 87% |
| July | 1.6 °C | -3.1 °C | -7.4 °C | 8.2 | 93% |
| August | 2.5 °C | -1.6 °C | -9.5 °C | 3.8 | 76% |
| September | 3.6 °C | -0.2 °C | -2.1 °C | 1.2 | 53% |
| October | 4.9 °C | 0.8 °C | -1 °C | 0.4 | 20% |
| November | 6.6 °C | 1.8 °C | -1.1 °C | 0 | 4% |
| December | 8.7 °C | 3.6 °C | 1.8 °C | 0 | 0% |
Frost here means a night minimum at or below 0 °C at 2 m. Frost nights is the average count per month; years with frost is how many years had at least one.
Frost alerts for your garden or field
LayEarth Business Agro sends an alert when the forecast low at your saved site drops below your threshold (0 °C by default), with frost risk, hours below zero and white or black frost for each forecast day. LayEarth Pro, from 9 USD a month, adds alerts for the places you follow.
Temperature map around Queenstown
The live temperature layer of the map (NOAA GFS forecast): watch the cold nights coming hour by hour.
More for Queenstown
Will it rain today in Queenstown? · Open the temperature map on Queenstown
Questions
- When is the last frost in Queenstown?
- On average around 15 September. In an early year the last frost comes by 14 August, in a late one (1 year in 10) after 18 October.
- When is the first frost in Queenstown?
- On average around 5 June. In 1 year in 10 it comes before 12 May, in a mild year not until 28 June.
- How long is the growing season in Queenstown?
- About 265 frost-free days between the last spring frost and the first autumn frost, from 223 in a short year to 353 in a long one.
- When can I plant tomatoes in Queenstown?
- Frost-tender plants such as tomatoes, peppers, beans and courgettes go out after the last frost: after 18 October the risk is down to 1 year in 10. Hardy crops can go earlier.
- How cold does it get in Queenstown?
- The coldest night of winter averages -4.1 °C; the lowest since 1981 was -9.5 °C in 2016.
Frost dates nearby
How these dates are computed
Daily minimum temperature at 2 m from NASA POWER (MERRA-2 reanalysis, public domain), 1981–2025, corrected from the ~50 km grid to the real altitude of Queenstown (6.5 °C per km). For each year: the last night at or below 0 °C before midsummer and the first one after it; the dates are the median and the 10% / 90% of those years. A garden in a frost pocket or a city centre can differ by days. Live temperatures: the temperature layer of the map.