Enter the daily maximum air temperature and the daily minimum temperature into the calculator to determine the GDU.

GDU Formula

The following formula is used to calculate growing degree units.

GDU = (DmaxT + DminT)/2 – 50

  • Where GDU is the growing degree units
  • DmaxT is the daily maximum temperature of the area (F)
  • DminT is the daily minimum temperature of the area (F)

GDU Definition

What is GDU?

GDU, also denoted GDD sometimes, is short for growing degree units. A growing degree unit is a measurement of the amount of heat corn needs to reach certain points in its growing cycle.

This can be applied to other plants and crops, but corn is the original and most common.

Example Problem

How to calculate GDU?

First, determine the maximum daily temperature. For this example problem, the maximum daily temperature is found to be 85 degrees F.

Next, determine the daily minimum temperature. In this case, the daily minimum temperature is measured to be 65 F.

Finally, calculate the growing degree units using the formula above:

GDU =(DmaxT + DminT)/2 – 50

GDU =(85 + 65)/2 – 50

GDU= 25 GDU