USDA zones by ZIP code and NOAA freeze dates for Hesperia, Victorville, Apple Valley, Adelanto, Phelan and Barstow, with plain-English odds.
Get a Free Yard EstimateHesperia, Victorville, Apple Valley, Adelanto, Oak Hills and Phelan are USDA planting zone 8b on the 2023 map, and Barstow is 9a. NOAA puts Victorville’s median last spring freeze at March 18 and its median first fall freeze at November 11. In practice, protect tender plants until mid-April and expect frost any time after late October.
Every number on this page comes from the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023) and NOAA’s 1991-2020 climate normals for the weather stations in and around the Victor Valley (NOAA NCEI). The stations do not agree with each other, and that is the most useful thing to know: two yards ten miles apart can have frost dates weeks apart.
Hesperia is USDA zone 8b. So are Victorville, Apple Valley, Adelanto, Oak Hills, Phelan and Lucerne Valley. Zone 8b means the coldest night of the year averages 15 to 20°F. Barstow, lower and warmer in winter, is zone 9a, 20 to 25°F (USDA, 2023 zone data by ZIP).
| Town | ZIP codes | USDA zone (2023) | Average coldest night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hesperia | 92345 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Oak Hills | 92344 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Victorville and Spring Valley Lake | 92392, 92394, 92395 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Apple Valley | 92307, 92308 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Adelanto | 92301 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Phelan | 92371 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Lucerne Valley | 92356 | 8b | 15 to 20°F |
| Barstow | 92311 | 9a | 20 to 25°F |
A ZIP lookup uses one point near the middle of the ZIP code. Higher lots, like parts of Phelan and Pinon Hills, and low spots can run colder than that point. To check your exact address, enter it on the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.
These are NOAA’s 1991-2020 freeze normals at 32°F for the four stations that cover the Victor Valley and Barstow (NOAA NCEI). Elevations are from NOAA’s station records (Victorville, others).
| Station | Last spring freeze (median) | Last freeze, 1 year in 10 | First fall freeze (median) | First freeze, 1 year in 10 | Freeze-free days (median) | Nights a year at or below 32°F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victorville (about 2,880 ft) | March 18 | after April 12 | November 11 | by October 27 | 233 | 53.7 |
| Hesperia 2E (about 3,055 ft) | February 28 | after April 3 | December 1 | by November 11 | 270 | 32.1 |
| El Mirage, west of Adelanto (about 2,950 ft) | March 21 | after April 22 | November 12 | by October 28 | 235 | 70.5 |
| Barstow (about 2,220 ft) | February 22 | after March 24 | November 23 | by November 9 | 271 | 31.8 |
NOAA also tracks the harder 28°F freeze. The median last 28°F night is February 22 at Victorville, January 30 at Hesperia 2E and February 21 at El Mirage. The median first one in fall is November 24, December 14 and November 27 (NOAA).
Real cold happens too. Victorville reaches 20°F or colder in about 6 years out of 10, El Mirage in about 7 out of 10, Barstow in about 1 in 3 and Hesperia 2E in about 1 in 10 (NOAA). The January 2007 cold snap hit 5°F at Hesperia (NWS San Diego).
A frost date is not a promise. NOAA gives probabilities, and each column above answers a different question:
Look at the table again. The Hesperia 2E station sits about 175 feet higher than the Victorville station, yet it averages about 22 fewer freezing nights a year and its median last freeze comes about two and a half weeks earlier (NOAA).
NOAA does not explain the gap. The usual explanation, and it is general practice rather than something NOAA states, is cold air drainage. On calm, clear nights, cold air is heavier than warm air, so it slides downhill and pools in low ground. The Victorville station sits near the Mojave River, in lower ground, and its numbers fit that pattern. El Mirage, out on the open flats west of Adelanto, is colder still.
What that means for your yard (general practice, not NOAA guidance):
Sunset’s Western garden zones put the “medium to high desert of California and southern Nevada” in Zone 11 (Sunset). If a plant tag or a Western garden book lists Sunset zones, look for 11. We could not confirm which Sunset zone covers the higher Phelan and Pinon Hills area, so we are not listing one.
Our drought tolerant plants guide lists plants that handle both the cold and the heat here.
If you search “last frost date Victorville,” you will find popular gardening sites that list a last frost as early as the start of March or as late as early April, and a first frost around the end of October. None of those match NOAA’s current 1991-2020 normals for the Victorville station, which are March 18 and November 11 (NOAA NCEI).
There can be fair reasons for the gap. A site may use an older 30-year period, a different station, or a ZIP code lookup that lands on a station miles away. Our advice is to use the NOAA table above for the station closest to you, and lean toward the colder date if your yard sits low.
Put it together and you get two dates worth remembering:
Frost dates also drive the rest of the yard. Goatheads cannot tolerate freezing, so they sprout after the last freeze and die with the first hard one (UC IPM); see our High Desert weeds guide. And sprinkler pipes and backflow devices need protection before the first hard freeze. Hesperia lists irrigation control valves among the pipes most at risk (City of Hesperia). Use our sprinkler winterizing guide and backflow freeze protection guide, and see the yard care calendar for what to do each month.
Soil matters as much as the date for new plantings. Read our High Desert soils guide before you dig, and our irrigation guide for watering new plants through their first year.
All three are USDA zone 8b on the 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which means the coldest night of the year averages 15 to 20 degrees F. Adelanto, Oak Hills, Phelan and Lucerne Valley are also 8b by ZIP code. Barstow is 9a. Check your exact address on the USDA map, since low spots and higher lots can run colder.
NOAA’s 1991-2020 normals put the median last spring freeze at Victorville on March 18. One year in ten the last freeze comes after April 12, so wait until mid-April to set out tender plants.
The median first fall freeze is November 11 at Victorville, November 12 at El Mirage, November 23 at Barstow and December 1 at Hesperia 2E. One year in ten, Victorville’s first freeze comes by October 27, so expect frost any time after late October.
Sunset places the medium to high desert of California and southern Nevada in its Zone 11. We could not confirm the Sunset zone for the higher Phelan and Pinon Hills area.
Forecasts and weather stations measure one spot. On calm, clear nights cold air settles into low ground, so yards in washes, near the Mojave River or at the bottom of a slope often run colder. That is general practice, not a NOAA finding, but NOAA’s own numbers show the lower Victorville station freezing far more often than Hesperia 2E.
We checked every number on this page against the public sources below. If a rule or date changes, the agency page is the final word.
Monarch designs High Desert yards with plants rated for zone 8b, drip irrigation that can be winterized, and rock and DG that hold up to the wind. Book a free consultation and we will walk your yard, including the cold spots.
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