Halifax is heading for its first below-zero night of the fall, and it’s now a day earlier than first expected. Environment Canada’s forecast for the city calls for a low of minus 2 Saturday night, followed by zero on Sunday night.

That would come more than two weeks earlier than last year. The weather station at Halifax Stanfield didn’t drop below zero until Nov. 3, 2025, when it bottomed out at minus 0.1, according to Environment Canada’s daily climate records. This fall the lowest reading so far is 1.2 degrees on Tuesday morning. The normal low for this time of year is plus 4.

Some backyards may have already seen frost. Environment Canada put Halifax under a frost advisory last Saturday, though the official reading at the airport stayed above zero.

Before the cold comes the wind. Northwest wind is blowing at 40 km/h with gusts to 60 today, and the airport recorded a 59 km/h gust late this morning. It should ease to 20 gusting to 40 late this afternoon and go light by late evening, with a clear night and a low of plus 1. If patio furniture, green bins or early Halloween decorations are still loose, now is the time to tie them down.

The next round arrives Friday. Clouds build through the day and a few showers start in the afternoon, then Friday night brings rain and wind with a low of 8. Saturday stays windy and cloudy with a 60 per cent chance of showers and a high of 11 before the temperature drops to minus 2 overnight.

If you still have tomatoes, peppers, basil or potted annuals outside, pick what’s left and bring the pots in before Saturday evening. Hardier plants can usually ride out a light frost under an old bedsheet or frost cloth, put on before dark and taken off in the morning once it warms up. With Saturday’s wind, weigh down the edges so it stays put.

Garden hoses are the other thing people tend to forget. Unhook them from outdoor taps and drain them, because water left sitting in the line can freeze and split the pipe. If your house has an indoor shut-off for the outside tap, close it and open the tap outside so it can drain.

As of Thursday morning, Environment Canada had no warnings or advisories in effect for Halifax. Monday’s forecast turns sunny with a high of 13.