Dumfries and Galloway catches the full Atlantic, which keeps autumns long and mild. The first autumn frost holds off to late October.
The surprise is spring: Dumfries records more April air frost than Edinburgh or Inverness, so despite its mild reputation it is not Scotland’s earliest region. Mild in autumn, ordinary in spring.
Frost dates for Southwest
Half-month bands from named Met Office stations (1991-2020 averages). Lowland means coastal or under about 150m; upland is higher or inland.
| Garden | Last spring frost | First autumn frost | Safe to plant out | Season | Station | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| lowland | late April | late October | mid May | ~180 days | Dumfries, Crichton Royal No 2 | high |
| upland | mid-to-late May | late September | early June | ~130 days | Eskdalemuir (242m) | high |
Sources: Met Office · Met Office
What this means for growing here
Sow and plant out to these dates rather than a UK calendar, and remember they are regional averages. Your own plot can run two to four weeks later in a frost pocket, or earlier against a warm wall. If your garden is high or inland, use the upland row; if it is coastal or low, the lowland one.The Planting Calendar turns these into a month-by-month plan.
Sources
- Met Office: location-specific long-term averages: the 1991-2020 air-frost day counts behind every variant row, including the Inverness/Edinburgh comparison
- Derivation method: GrowScotland's own. We treat a month as carrying meaningful frost risk when it averages at least half an air-frost day, take the last such month in spring and the first in autumn, and express each as a half-month band.