Your nature year
Nashville, Tennesseethrough the year
Also for Franklin, TN, Hendersonville, TN, Smyrna, TN, Gallatin, TN, Lebanon, TN, Brentwood, TN, Mount Juliet, TN, La Vergne, TN, Clarksville, TN, Hopkinsville, KY, Murfreesboro, TN, Shelbyville, TN, Spring Hill, TN, Columbia, TN: the same nearby places.
When do frost, green-up and fall color come to Nashville?
Frost usually lets go around Apr 1 and comes back around Oct 31, according to NOAA's Shelby Bottoms Nature Ctr station, 3.4 miles away: roughly 213 days without it. Nashville sits at about 427 feet. Spring green-up reaches town around Feb 25, with first blooms around Apr 1. Spring takes about 5 weeks to go from leaf to bloom. Head southwest for the closest of the 7 places we follow around Nashville. The closest place we follow is Natchez Trace Parkway, 64 miles away, for fall foliage, Oct 11–31 (local timing). Mammoth Cave (80 mi) is the pick for wildflowers, Mar 1–May 31 (local timing). Across Tennessee, fall color is usually well under way by late October.
Updated Sep 28. Sources: US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer (places) ↗ (opens in a new tab), US Census Bureau, city and town population estimates, 2024 ↗ (opens in a new tab), NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (annual/seasonal) ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Nashville's year at a glance
- Frost possible
- Frost-free, ~Apr 1 to ~Oct 31
- First leaf ~Feb 25
- First bloom ~Apr 1
- Fall color under way ~Oct 21 (TN)
- Today
Near Nashville right now
- Fall color is usually well under way by late October in TennesseeStatewide · USA-NPN volunteer observations, 2020–2025 · not a forecast~3 weeks
- First fall frost usually around Oct 31 · last spring frost around Apr 1NOAA 1991–2020 normals, Shelby Bottoms Nature Ctr (3.4 mi, 50% dates)~5 weeks
- Fall foliage · Natchez Trace Parkway · 64 miLocal timing: Oct 11–31~13 days
Nashville's nature year
- Spring green-upFeb
- Wildflowers · Mammoth CaveMar–May
- Last spring frostApr
- Fall color (TN)Oct
- First fall frostOct
Nearby, season by season
Fall foliage
- Natchez Trace Parkway · 64 miLocal timing: Oct 11–31~13 days
- Mammoth Cave · 80 miLocal timing: Oct 21–31~3 weeks
- Big South Fork · 120 miStatewide: usually well under way by late October~3 weeks
Wildflowers
- Mammoth Cave · 80 miLocal timing: Mar 1–May 31~5 months
Frost and green-up
Last spring frost
Apr 1
Average (50% date)
First fall frost
Oct 31
About 213 days without frost between
Spring green-up
Feb 25
First bloom around Apr 1
Frost: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals at Shelby Bottoms Nature Ctr (3.4 mi from Nashville), the day a 32 °F night is as likely as not. Green-up: the USA-NPN Spring Index, 1991–2020 average at the town.
Questions people ask
When is the first frost in Nashville?
On average around Oct 31, and the last spring frost around Apr 1: about 213 days without frost between. These are NOAA's 1991–2020 normals at Shelby Bottoms Nature Ctr, 3.4 miles away (the day a 32 °F night is as likely as not).
When does spring green-up reach Nashville?
The USA-NPN Spring Index puts first leaf around Feb 25 and first bloom around Apr 1, on average for 1991–2020 at the town.
Where can I see fall foliage near Nashville?
Natchez Trace Parkway, 64 miles (local timing: Oct 11–31); Mammoth Cave, 80 miles (local timing: Oct 21–31); Big South Fork, 120 miles (statewide: usually well under way by late October). Distances are straight-line.
Where can I see wildflowers near Nashville?
Mammoth Cave, 80 miles (local timing: Mar 1–May 31). Distances are straight-line.
How we know
US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer (places) (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · US Census Bureau, city and town population estimates, 2024 (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (annual/seasonal) (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · USA National Phenology Network, Spring Index 1991–2020 averages (opens in a new tab) (Sep 27) · USA National Phenology Network, colored leaves observations (opens in a new tab) (Sep 28)