Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW), North Carolina climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)'s normal year runs from 27°F January nights to 88°F July afternoons, with 50.6 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 14.3°C, January lows of −3°C, July highs of 31°C, 1,285 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationVale Agricultural (2 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00318906
- Location35.52°N 81.44°W
- Elevation985 ft (300 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) is 69°F and the normal low 42°F.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW).
- Jan 50° 27°
- Feb 54° 29°
- Mar 62° 33°
- Apr 71° 43°
- May 78° 53°
- Jun 85° 62°
- Jul 88° 66°
- Aug 86° 65°
- Sep 81° 59°
- Oct 72° 46°
- Nov 61° 34°
- Dec 52° 29°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 88°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 27°F. The most precipitation falls in June (5.00 in), the least in February (3.51 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 50°F | 27°F | 38.7°F | 4.18 | – | <1 | 23 | 10 h |
| February | 54°F | 29°F | 41.7°F | 3.51 | – | <1 | 19 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 62°F | 33°F | 47.5°F | 4.46 | – | <1 | 14 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 71°F | 43°F | 57.1°F | 4.37 | – | <1 | 4 | 13 h |
| May | 78°F | 53°F | 65.5°F | 4.10 | – | 2 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 85°F | 62°F | 73.5°F | 5.00 | – | 7 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 88°F | 66°F | 76.8°F | 4.65 | – | 16 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 86°F | 65°F | 75.4°F | 4.41 | – | 8 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 81°F | 59°F | 69.7°F | 4.33 | – | 5 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 72°F | 46°F | 58.5°F | 3.55 | – | 1 | 1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 61°F | 34°F | 47.4°F | 3.70 | – | <1 | 15 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 52°F | 29°F | 40.7°F | 4.35 | – | <1 | 20 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 70°F | 45°F | 57.7°F | 50.61 | – | 38 | 95 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10°C | −3°C | 3.7°C | 106 mm |
| February | 12°C | −2°C | 5.4°C | 89 mm |
| March | 16°C | 1°C | 8.6°C | 113 mm |
| April | 22°C | 6°C | 13.9°C | 111 mm |
| May | 26°C | 12°C | 18.6°C | 104 mm |
| June | 29°C | 17°C | 23.1°C | 127 mm |
| July | 31°C | 19°C | 24.9°C | 118 mm |
| August | 30°C | 18°C | 24.1°C | 112 mm |
| September | 27°C | 15°C | 20.9°C | 110 mm |
| October | 22°C | 8°C | 14.7°C | 90 mm |
| November | 16°C | 1°C | 8.6°C | 94 mm |
| December | 11°C | −2°C | 4.8°C | 110 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Lincolnton (8 miles away), gets 6 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00318906; 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.
Which months are mildest at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, June, September and October.
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 USC00318906.
When is the last frost at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
In Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW), the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 12 in half of years and after April 26 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 28 in half of years and before October 16 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
- April 121 year in 10 after April 26; 9 in 10 after March 31
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 281 year in 10 before October 16; 9 in 10 before November 9
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 198 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 219 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 1 in half of springs and before November 5 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) in zone 8a in ZIP code 28168, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in North Carolina · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00318906; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. 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 at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
In a normal year in Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW), 38 days a year reach 90°F and 95 nights fall to 32°F or colder.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 38a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 95a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 3high of 32°F or less
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00318906.
How sunny is it at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
Over a year 77% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW), 4.4 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (80%) and February the cloudiest (72%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 75% | 2.6 |
| February | 72% | 3.3 |
| March | 73% | 4.3 |
| April | 76% | 5.5 |
| May | 76% | 6.0 |
| June | 80% | 6.3 |
| July | 78% | 6.0 |
| August | 79% | 5.5 |
| September | 77% | 4.7 |
| October | 77% | 3.8 |
| November | 78% | 3.0 |
| December | 72% | 2.3 |
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 many heating and cooling degree days does Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) record?
A normal year at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) brings 3,889 heating degree days, 28% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,264 cooling degree days, 39% more than the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 4,120 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 815 | 0 |
| February | 653 | 0 |
| March | 544 | 2 |
| April | 255 | 18 |
| May | 79 | 96 |
| June | 3 | 260 |
| July | 0 | 364 |
| August | 1 | 325 |
| September | 30 | 171 |
| October | 229 | 28 |
| November | 528 | 1 |
| December | 752 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 3,889 | 1,264 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00318906. 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.
Have recent years at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 58.7°F, 1.0°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 57.7°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 58.8°F | +1.1°F | 40.28 |
| 2022 | 58.3°F | +0.6°F | 62.58 |
| 2023 | 59.2°F | +1.5°F | 51.57 |
| 2024 | 59.7°F | +2.0°F | 62.48 |
| 2025 | 58.7°F | +1.0°F | 45.56 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00318906. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)'s climate compare?
Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) is warmer than 35 of the 131 places with their own NOAA record in North Carolina, and wetter than 64. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 57.7°F is warmer than 68%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) is Cfa: temperate, no dry season, hot 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 Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) share this climate record?
3 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their 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.
- Belwood, NC873 people · 5 mi SW
- Fallston, NC639 people · 7 mi SW
- Casar, NC307 people · 10 mi W
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 Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)'s climate
What is the coldest month at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
January, with a normal high of 50°F and a normal low of 27°F. The warmest is July (88°F by day, 66°F at night).
Does it snow at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for the station; the nearest record that keeps one, Lincolnton (8 miles away), records 6 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
June, with 5.00 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 3.51 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW) in zone 8a in ZIP code 28168, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Vale Agricultural (2 mi SW)?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 12; in one year in ten it comes after April 26. Waiting until April 26 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- North Carolina climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Lincolnton, NC8 miles from this station, 59.8°F a year
- Hickory, NC16 miles from this station, 59.0°F a year
- Shelby, NC16 miles from this station, 59.2°F a year
- Morganton, NC19 miles from this station, 57.9°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made