Butternut, Wisconsin climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Butternut's normal year runs from 1°F January nights to 78°F July afternoons, with 36.0 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 4.3°C, January lows of −17°C, July highs of 25°C, 915 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationButternut (3 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00471249
- Location45.98°N 90.54°W
- Elevation1,570 ft (479 m)
- From the center3 miles
- Population366
On October 22, the normal high in Butternut is 50°F and the normal low 31°F.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Butternut.
- Jan 20° 1°
- Feb 24° 3°
- Mar 37° 14°
- Apr 50° 28°
- May 64° 40°
- Jun 74° 50°
- Jul 78° 54°
- Aug 76° 52°
- Sep 68° 44°
- Oct 53° 33°
- Nov 37° 22°
- Dec 25° 10°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Butternut each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 78°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 1°F. The most precipitation falls in June (4.98 in), the least in January (1.16 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 20°F | 1°F | 10.4°F | 1.16 | – | <1 | 31 | 9 h |
| February | 24°F | 3°F | 13.6°F | 1.38 | – | <1 | 28 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 37°F | 14°F | 25.4°F | 1.96 | – | <1 | 28 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 50°F | 28°F | 38.6°F | 3.02 | – | <1 | 23 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 64°F | 40°F | 52.0°F | 3.87 | – | <1 | 8 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 74°F | 50°F | 61.7°F | 4.98 | – | <1 | 1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 78°F | 54°F | 65.8°F | 4.26 | – | 1 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| August | 76°F | 52°F | 63.8°F | 3.71 | – | <1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 68°F | 44°F | 56.0°F | 3.83 | – | <1 | 4 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 53°F | 33°F | 43.2°F | 3.98 | – | <1 | 16 | 11 h |
| November | 37°F | 22°F | 29.4°F | 2.06 | – | <1 | 26 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 25°F | 10°F | 17.1°F | 1.80 | – | <1 | 31 | 8 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 50°F | 29°F | 39.7°F | 36.01 | – | 2 | 195 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −7°C | −17°C | −12.0°C | 29 mm |
| February | −4°C | −16°C | −10.2°C | 35 mm |
| March | 3°C | −10°C | −3.7°C | 50 mm |
| April | 10°C | −2°C | 3.7°C | 77 mm |
| May | 18°C | 4°C | 11.1°C | 98 mm |
| June | 23°C | 10°C | 16.5°C | 126 mm |
| July | 25°C | 12°C | 18.8°C | 108 mm |
| August | 24°C | 11°C | 17.7°C | 94 mm |
| September | 20°C | 7°C | 13.3°C | 97 mm |
| October | 12°C | 1°C | 6.2°C | 101 mm |
| November | 3°C | −6°C | −1.4°C | 52 mm |
| December | −4°C | −12°C | −8.3°C | 46 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station, and no record within 25 miles keeps one, so snow is left out here rather than estimated.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00471249; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Butternut?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August and September.
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00471249.
When is the last frost in Butternut?
In Butternut, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 22 in half of years and after June 4 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 24 in half of years and before September 10 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 221 year in 10 after June 4; 9 in 10 after May 6
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 241 year in 10 before September 10; 9 in 10 before October 8
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 126 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 149 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 7 in half of springs and before October 4 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Butternut in zone 4a in ZIP code 54514, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Butternut's NOAA station is in zone 4a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −29°F (15 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Wisconsin · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00471249; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Butternut?
In a normal year in Butternut, 2 days a year reach 90°F and 195 nights fall to 32°F or colder.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 2a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 195a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 94high of 32°F or less
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00471249.
How sunny is Butternut?
Over a year 72% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Butternut, 3.7 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (78%) and December the cloudiest (57%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 70% | 1.7 |
| February | 76% | 2.8 |
| March | 73% | 3.9 |
| April | 68% | 4.6 |
| May | 68% | 5.4 |
| June | 73% | 6.0 |
| July | 78% | 6.2 |
| August | 76% | 5.2 |
| September | 74% | 4.0 |
| October | 66% | 2.5 |
| November | 62% | 1.6 |
| December | 57% | 1.1 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Butternut need?
A normal year in Butternut brings 9,385 heating degree days, 75% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 217 cooling degree days, 76% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 1,705 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,694 | 0 |
| February | 1,439 | 0 |
| March | 1,228 | 0 |
| April | 792 | 0 |
| May | 415 | 10 |
| June | 143 | 44 |
| July | 65 | 88 |
| August | 91 | 54 |
| September | 288 | 20 |
| October | 677 | 2 |
| November | 1,070 | 0 |
| December | 1,483 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 9,385 | 217 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00471249. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Butternut's climate compare?
Butternut is warmer than 2 of the other 164 places with their own NOAA record in Wisconsin, and wetter than 111. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 39.7°F is warmer than 5%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Butternut is Dfb: continental, no dry season, warm summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near Butternut share this climate record?
Glidden has no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of its own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Glidden, WI214 people · 11 mi N
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Butternut's climate
What is the coldest month in Butternut?
January, with a normal high of 20°F and a normal low of 1°F. The warmest is July (78°F by day, 54°F at night).
What is the rainiest month in Butternut?
June, with 4.98 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 1.16 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Butternut in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Butternut in zone 4a in ZIP code 54514, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Butternut's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −29°F (15 years, 1991-2020): zone 4a.
How late can frost come in Butternut?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 22; in one year in ten it comes after June 4. Waiting until June 4 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Wisconsin climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Park Falls, WI6 miles from this station, 40.8°F a year
- Clam Lake, WI25 miles from this station, 39.6°F a year
- Winter, WI25 miles from this station, 40.9°F a year
- Mellen, WI27 miles from this station, 40.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made