Mitchellville, Iowa Weather
Prairie lightning bugs rise. Day 77 of spring. Read this microseason across nine climate regions →
Mitchellville weather forecast — hour by hour, 7-day outlook, NOAA radar
- TodayJun 4Heavy Rain72%0.91″84°64°—
- FridayJun 5Thunderstorm71%1.1″80°68°-4°
- SaturdayJun 6Light Drizzle45%—87°68°+7°
- SundayJun 7Showers64%0.05″80°69°-7°
- MondayJun 8Thunderstorm56%—85°66°+5°
- TuesdayJun 9Thunderstorm40%0.40″84°65°-1°
- WednesdayJun 10Thunderstorm17%—91°74°+7°
Ozone at AQI 55 — peak already passed at 1 PM under partly cloudy skies. AQI up 10 over the last 6 hours (gradual rise). Levels should ease through evening.
OK No precautions needed for the general population; unusually sensitive individuals may consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
What's driving it
Ozone × UV × Sky
Ozone at AQI 55 — peak already passed at 1 PM under partly cloudy skies. Levels should ease through evening.
- Present
- AQI 55
- UV peak
- 5.7 at earlier today
- Sky at peak
- partly cloudy
- Projected peak
- AQI 55
PM × Wind × Precip
PM2.5 at 7.9 µg/m³, PM10 at 9.0 µg/m³ — typical background levels with no transport signature.
- PM2.5/PM10
- 0.88
- Wind
- breezy
- Recent rain
- 0h in last 6h
- Pattern
- background
Trends
Seven days of AQI and PM2.5.
Hourly air-quality data from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, charted across the past and next several days. Dashed lines mark the AQI breakpoints at 50 (Good → Moderate) and 100 (Moderate → Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups).
A summer fog for fair, a winter fog for rain.
- Moonrise
- 4:48 AM
- Moonset
- 2:10 PM
- In sign
- ♒︎ Aquarius
Prairie lightning bugs rise
Mitchellville at a glance
- Today vs. normal: 11°F above the seasonal normal for this latitude
- Last frost: April 26 (climatological average for this latitude)
- Microseason: Jun 1–5
- Planting window: Harvest spring lettuce before it bolts. Sow heat-tolerant greens.
Right now in the garden
Peak growing season
As of June 4, the growing season is at its peak — frost is months away. Continue succession-planting beans and summer squash. Start fall brassicas (broccoli, cabbage, kale) from seed indoors for transplanting in late summer.
SPC Convective Outlook
Storm Prediction Center — Mitchellville
SPC has placed Mitchellville in the Slight Risk category for severe thunderstorms tomorrow.
- TODAYMRGLMarginal Risk
- TOMORROWSLGTSlight Risk
- DAY 3TSTMGeneral Thunderstorms
Scattered severe storms possible. A few tornadoes, hail, and damaging wind gusts possible.
Source: NOAA / NWS Storm Prediction Center categorical convective outlook. Outlooks are re-issued multiple times per day; this page reflects the most recent SPC polygons covering the city’s coordinates.
Planting calendar
| Month | Plant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|
| January | — | — |
| February | — | — |
| March | — | — |
| April | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes | — |
| May | lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes, tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, radishes |
| June | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | lettuce, peas, radishes |
| July | tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash | tomatoes, beans, summer squash |
| August | — | tomatoes, beans, summer squash |
| September | fall brassicas, garlic (overwinter), carrots | tomatoes, beans, summer squash |
| October | fall brassicas, garlic (overwinter), carrots | winter squash, tomatoes (last) |
| November | — | — |
| December | — | — |
A year in weather
Mitchellville's warmest month is July (~74°F mean) and its coldest is January (~21°F). Rainfall peaks in June (5.6 inches) and bottoms out in January (1.0 inches).
| Month | Mean temp | Precip | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 21° | 1.0″ | 3 |
| February | 26° | 1.4″ | 4 |
| March | 39° | 2.3″ | 5 |
| April | 50° | 3.8″ | 7 |
| May | 61° | 4.8″ | 8 |
| June | 70° | 5.6″ | 8 |
| July | 74° | 3.9″ | 5 |
| August | 72° | 4.2″ | 7 |
| September | 64° | 3.2″ | 6 |
| October | 52° | 2.9″ | 5 |
| November | 38° | 1.9″ | 4 |
| December | 27° | 1.6″ | 4 |
Regional context
Mitchellville's baseline climate, derived from NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals at the nearest reporting station, swings from a January mean of 21°F to a July mean of 74°F — a 52°F seasonal arc typical of the mid-latitude bands. Annual precipitation runs about 36.6 inches spread across roughly 66 days with measurable rain or snow each year.
Precipitation runs summer-dominant here: June averages 5.6 inches across 8.1 days with measurable rain, driven mostly by warm-season storms and thunderstorm activity, while January drops to just 1.0 inches across 3.2 rainy days under drier cool-season air. That summer-storm-driven distribution puts Mitchellville in a cohort with places like Valeria, IA, Bondurant, IA and Altoona, IA, all of which depend on warm-season convective activity for the bulk of their annual moisture.
The frost-sensitive growing window opens around mid-April, when overnight lows reliably clear freezing for cool-season crops like kale, peas, spinach, and parsnips. Warm-soil crops — tomatoes, peppers, eggplant — wait until soil temperatures reach the mid-50s°F, usually two weeks past the last-frost date. The window closes around mid-November, when overnight lows resume dipping below freezing and frost-tender plants need protection or harvest. These are 30-year central tendencies; year-to-year frost dates can move by up to two weeks. Local features matter: a south-facing slope inside Mitchellville typically runs 3-5 days ahead of the regional last-frost date, while a low-lying lot along a creek or drainage can lag the same date by a week or more on calm clear nights.
Similar climates: Valeria, IA, Bondurant, IA, Altoona, IA, Colfax, IA, Mingo, IA.
Frequently asked
- When does it freeze in Mitchellville?
- Mitchellville's last spring frost typically falls around mid-April, and the first fall frost arrives around mid-November.
- What is the rainy season in Mitchellville?
- June is the wettest month with about 5.6 inches of rain on average; the city receives roughly 37 inches annually.
- What is the warmest month in Mitchellville?
- July is typically warmest, averaging about 74°F.
- What is the coldest month in Mitchellville?
- January is typically coldest, averaging about 21°F.
- When can I start a vegetable garden in Mitchellville?
- Cool-season crops (peas, lettuce) can be sown around the last spring frost (mid-April); warm-season crops (tomatoes, peppers) wait until 1–2 weeks after.
- How many rainy days does Mitchellville get?
- Mitchellville averages about 66 rainy days per year.
- What hardiness zone is Mitchellville?
- Mitchellville's USDA hardiness zone is determined by its lowest average winter temperature; check the USDA's online lookup with the city ZIP for the current zone designation.
Climate
Mitchellville, Iowa sits in a warm-summer humid continental climate zone. January means hover near 21°F while July averages 74°F — a 52°F seasonal swing.
Across the year, Mitchellville receives about 37 inches of precipitation spread over roughly 66 rainy days.
The rhythm of the year is set by latitude (41.7°N), proximity to large water bodies, and elevation — all of which shape what grows here, when frost is likely, and what the weather story looks like day to day.