Tulsa, OK Frost Dates
Average frost dates, USDA hardiness zone, and growing season length for Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Gardening in Tulsa
Green Country earns its name — northeastern Oklahoma is greener, wetter, and more lush than the western prairie, and Tulsa's gardens reflect it. The city's Art Deco architecture provides beautiful backdrops for gardens that draw on both Southern and Plains traditions.
Tulsa gets 20 inches more rain than OKC, which makes a dramatic difference in the garden. Your 216-day growing season is one of the longest in Oklahoma. The Arkansas River corridor provides fertile bottomland, and the eastern Oklahoma red soil is more workable than the western prairie clay. Summer humidity is genuine — you're closer to Arkansas than you are to Amarillo, climatically speaking.
The Gathering Place, Tulsa's world-class park, includes community garden and food education spaces that reflect the city's investment in green spaces. Tulsa's Kendall Whittier and Cherry Street neighborhoods have thriving front-yard food garden cultures. The Tulsa State Fair's gardening competitions carry the weight of decades of Oklahoma horticultural tradition.
What This Means for Tulsa Gardeners
The average last spring frost in Tulsa is around March 30, and the average first fall frost arrives around November 1. That gives you approximately 216 frost-free days to work with.
That's a generous season. You have time for full-size tomatoes, long-season peppers, and even watermelons without the anxiety of racing the frost. Start warm-season seeds indoors 6-8 weeks before your last frost to hit the ground running. Fall planting is your second opportunity — garlic, kale, lettuce, and broccoli all go in 8-10 weeks before your first frost for harvest into late autumn.
These dates are based on NOAA 30-year Climate Normal data for the Tulsa area. Your actual frost dates could shift 2-3 weeks in either direction in any given year. Learn more about our data sources.
What to Grow in Tulsa
Tulsa's 216-day growing season is generous — long enough for two full growing windows (spring and fall) with warm-season crops between them. You can grow the full range of vegetables, herbs, and flowers with proper timing. Focus on heat-tolerant varieties for midsummer and cool-season crops for extended fall harvests. Recommended starting points: tomatoes, peppers, beans, cucumbers, squash, garlic, kale, and sunflowers.
See the full Oklahoma planting guide for all 40 plants: Oklahoma Planting Calendar. Or enter your zip code for exact planting dates personalized to Tulsa.
More About Zone 7A
Tulsa is in USDA Hardiness Zone 7A, which means average annual extreme minimum temperatures between 0°F to 5°F. View the full Zone 7A planting guide.
See the complete planting calendar for Oklahoma: Oklahoma Planting Calendar.
Other Cities in Oklahoma
Frequently Asked Questions
These dates are based on NOAA's 30-year Climate Normal data for the Tulsa area. They represent historical averages, not predictions. In any given year, the actual last frost could be 2-3 weeks earlier or later. Microclimates within Tulsa (urban heat islands, hilltops, low-lying valleys) can also shift your local frost dates by a week or more.
Cool-season crops go in 3-4 weeks before your last frost (March 30). Warm-season crops wait until 2 weeks after. You have time for a fall round too — plant cool-season crops again in late summer for harvest into autumn. Enter your zip code for exact dates.