Ragweed season in Minnesota ends around October 1
Ragweed doesn't stop on a schedule. It keeps flowering until a freeze kills the plants, which is why the end of the season is a weather question rather than a calendar one — and in Minnesota, the answer sits around October 1 in a typical year.
Is ragweed season still going in Minnesota?
- Ragweed In season now — about 6 weeks to the typical first frost
Status comes from the typical season window for this area, not from a pollen count — a cool spring or a late frost moves the real dates by a week or two either way. These are the windows for Minnesota.
Why the end of the season is a frost date
Two thresholds matter, and NOAA records both. The first 32°F frost is the one that ends ragweed season. The first 28°F hard freeze, which follows it, is what finishes off the plants for good. City tables on this site show both.
These are fifty-fifty dates, not deadlines. At each city's own weather station, NOAA's 30-year record puts half of the first freezes before the date and half after — so ragweed ends early in a cold autumn and hangs on well past the date in a warm one.
Many people plan ahead of the season; if that includes anything medical, ask your doctor.
Where in Minnesota it ends first
Frost doesn't switch a state off all at once. It reaches the coldest corners of Minnesota around September 30 and the mildest around October 18 — 18 days apart, so ragweed season can be finished at one end of the state while it's still going at the other.
| City | First frost (32°F) | Hard freeze (28°F) |
|---|---|---|
| St. Cloud | September 30 | October 8 |
| Duluth | October 1 | October 13 |
| Rochester | October 6 | October 17 |
| Minneapolis | October 18 | October 29 |
Based on 30 years of NOAA frost records (1991–2020).
What comes after
Once frost has been through, the pollen year starts over: Minnesota then gets its one genuinely quiet stretch of the year, and tree pollen opens the next one in mid-March.
The full Minnesota pollen year — tree, grass and ragweed, with the dates each one starts — is on the Minnesota season page. For how ragweed works nationally, see ragweed season.
Common questions
When does ragweed season end in Minnesota?
Around October 1 in a typical year — the day the first freeze usually arrives in Minnesota. A warm autumn pushes it later; an early cold snap ends it sooner.
Does the first frost really end it?
Effectively, yes — and that is what makes the date worth looking up. Common ragweed is an annual: it grows from seed every spring and has no way to survive a freeze, so the cold kills the plants outright rather than slowing them down. A dead plant releases no more pollen, which is why the first frost is an ending and not just a quiet spell.
Does it end everywhere in Minnesota at once?
No. The first freeze crosses Minnesota over roughly 18 days — earliest around September 30, latest around October 18 — so ragweed season is finished at one end of the state while it is still running at the other. The city table above gives the local date.
What comes after ragweed in Minnesota?
Nothing, for a while — ragweed is the last pollen of the year. The next season to open in Minnesota is tree pollen in mid-March, usually starting with alder.
Sources: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 (first-frost and hard-freeze dates) · Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America · Iowa State University Extension — common ragweed. Season windows reviewed August 2026.