Planting calendar for Reading, PA
Direct answer. In Reading, PA, the median last 32°F date at READING SPAATZ FLD, PA US (USW00014712) is April 14, and the median first 32°F date is October 29. The station is 2.9 miles from the city point. Crop windows come from Penn State Extension. Where that guide counts weeks from a frost date and does not name a 10%, 50%, or 90% level, those weeks are applied to these median dates.
Median last 32°F April 14. Median first 32°F October 29. Frost dates for Reading.
Outside the median season Growing seasonTicks: 10%, 50%, and 90%
Last 32°F in spring
NCEI’s probability is the chance the last spring minimum of 32°F or lower occurs on or after the date.
| Probability | Date | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| 90% | April 1 | Earlier date. A last 32°F on or after this day is common. |
| 50% | April 14 | Median. |
| 10% | April 30 | Later date. A last 32°F on or after this day is uncommon. |
First 32°F in fall
NCEI’s probability is the chance the first autumn minimum of 32°F or lower occurs on or before the date.
| Probability | Date | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | October 13 | Earlier date. A first 32°F on or before this day is uncommon. |
| 50% | October 29 | Median. |
| 90% | November 10 | Later date. A first 32°F on or before this day is common. |
32°F growing-season length
Days between the last spring 32°F and the first autumn 32°F. The figure is a length the season meets or exceeds at that probability, from NCEI, not a subtraction done on this site.
| Probability the season is at least this long | Days |
|---|---|
| 10% | 217 |
| 50% | 197 |
| 90% | 173 |
28°F threshold
| 10% | 50% | 90% | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last, on or after | April 15 | April 1 | March 17 |
| First, on or before | October 25 | November 8 | November 24 |
| Season at least | 243 days | 221 days | 201 days |
36°F threshold
| 10% | 50% | 90% | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last, on or after | May 13 | April 28 | April 14 |
| First, on or before | October 4 | October 17 | November 1 |
| Season at least | 193 days | 172 days | 152 days |
Station READING SPAATZ FLD, PA US (USW00014712). Completeness flag R, 22 years used for the 32°F dates. NCEI’s annual probability of at least one day at or below 32°F is 100%. Freeze dates are conditional on that threshold occurring. Elevation 103.9 m. The same probability language applies to the 28°F and 36°F rows when those dates passed the same quality checks.
Questions
- Which frost date do the crop weeks use?
- Weeks after the frost-free date use the median last 32°F date, April 14, when the guide does not name a probability. Weeks before the first freeze use the median first 32°F date, October 29. Both medians are 50% dates in the NOAA 1991–2020 normals for the station on this page. The page says when that anchor was used.
- Where do the crop dates come from?
- Crop dates come from the extension guide cited on this page, not from a second calendar invented here. The publisher and the title are printed with the source note. A month without a day is expanded to the first and last day of that month, and the page says so. A phrase without two dates stays a phrase.
- Is this planting calendar a forecast?
- No. The frost dates are 1991–2020 climate normals at the station 2.9 miles from the city point. The crop windows are the cited guide’s ranges, shifted only when that guide itself used weeks. A cold spring can still fall past the median. The National Weather Service forecast covers a particular night. This page does not.
Crops in the cited guide
Reading, PA
Zone 7aAverage annual extreme minimum 0°F to 5°F
Outside the median season Growing seasonTicks: 10%, 50%, and 90%
Pennsylvania. Nearest qualified station: READING SPAATZ FLD, PA US (USW00014712), 2.9 miles. Median last 32°F April 14. Median first 32°F October 29. The 50% growing-season length is 197 days.
Open the ZIP page · Crop guides for Pennsylvania
32°F probabilities at this station
| 10% | 50% | 90% | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last 32°F on or after | April 30 | April 14 | April 1 |
| First 32°F on or before | October 13 | October 29 | November 10 |
Column order matches the NCEI file: for the last freeze, 10% is the later date and 90% is the earlier date. How to read the probabilities.
Planting calendar
Windows below are from Penn State Extension, Starting Your Summer Vegetable Garden—Seeds or Transplants?, retrieved 2026-10-10. The page gives dates for much of Pennsylvania, not for named regions. Spinach is the crop placed in a named month, April, and that month is read as April 1 through April 30. Phrases such as “early April,” “mid-April to late May,” and “late May to early June” stay phrases, because the page does not give them a day. Crops the page times only as “after the danger of frost has passed” or “early spring,” with no month, are left off these windows.
Date checks use your device’s calendar and appear after the page loads.
State crop pages: Spinach · Leaf lettuce · Corn · Early cabbage · Early broccoli · Early cauliflower · Tomatoes · Peppers