When to plant bell peppers in Tauranga: from 4 December

In Tauranga, bell pepper: sow for seedlings from 14 September; plant into a greenhouse from 13 November; plant out into open ground from 4 December. There is no autumn frost here, so the frost dates set no end to the window. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Palmers (garden centre, 5 km) and Black Stump Berries (farm shop, 14 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Bell Pepper in Tauranga: soil, season and weather

In Tauranga the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 18 August, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the bell pepper card — only around 4 December, 108 days later. Tauranga has no autumn frost in the median year, so frost does not end the season.

Last spring frost	18 August
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	4 December, 108 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	from 13 November; November outside: 12.1 °C at night, 20 °C by day; card 15–30 °C
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	from 12 February
Daylight	12:37 on 5 October, 14:37 on 4 December
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 4 days; the driest month, May, has 10 rainy days

The same dates in Tauranga hold for Cucumber, Eggplant, Zucchini, Pumpkin and Watermelon.

Bell Pepper in Tauranga: care after planting

Planted on 4 December: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

Feeding, by the card’s schedule from that day:

4 December — feed: balanced (NPK)
1 January — feed: nitrogen

Pests and diseases of bell pepper to watch for:

Dates count from the first planting day of the window above; a later planting moves them by as many days.

Weather in Tauranga during the bell pepper season

No month of the season averages above the bell pepper card's 15–30 °C by day; the warmest, January, averages 23.5 °C. Nights average below 15 °C in March–May and December (9.6–14 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
December	22.1	14	142	16	14:45
January	23.5	15.1	141	13	14:29
February	23.2	15.5	153	14	13:30
March	21.6	13.6	134	11	12:22
April	19.2	11.9	161	12	11:08
May	16.6	9.6	133	10	10:07

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Bell Pepper in nearby cities

Around Tauranga, Napier is 31 days earlier and Wellington 13 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Rotorua	51 km	10 December – 3 February	6 days later
Hamilton (New Zealand)	79 km	3 December – 23 February	1 day earlier
Gisborne	194 km	from 7 November	27 days earlier
Napier	210 km	from 3 November	31 days earlier
Palmerston North	301 km	4 December – 29 February	same day
Wellington	418 km	from 17 December	13 days later

Where to buy bell pepper plants and seeds near Tauranga

Buy plants ready to set out from 4 December (from 13 November for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 14 September. Within 15 km of Tauranga OpenStreetMap lists 5 garden centres and 1 farm shop (collected 20 October 2026).

Palmers — garden centre
Mon–Sun 08:30–17:00 · 5 km
Black Stump Berries — farm shop
Te Puke Highway 529B · 14 km
Waipu Gardens Landscape Nursery — garden centre
2 km
Decor Garden World — garden centre
5 km

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