When to plant cucumbers in Madison: 28 May – 12 August

In Madison, cucumber: sow for seedlings from 9 April to 15 July; plant into a greenhouse from 7 May to 12 August; plant out into open ground from 28 May to 12 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Jung Garden Center (garden centre, 8 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Cucumber in Madison: soil, season and weather

In Madison the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 27 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the cucumber card — only around 28 May, 31 days later.

Last spring frost	27 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	28 May, 31 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	7 May – 12 August; May outside: 9.9 °C at night, 20.6 °C by day; card 18–25 °C
First autumn frost	27 October, 152 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	34
First harvest, if planted in this window	1 July – 15 September
Days left for picking	118
Daylight	14:03 on 30 April, 15:03 on 28 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 2 days; the driest month, August, has 10 rainy days

The same dates in Madison hold for Bell Pepper, Eggplant, Zucchini, Pumpkin and Watermelon.

Cucumber in Madison: care after planting

Planted on 28 May: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

4 June — feed: nitrogen

Pests and diseases of cucumber 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 Madison during the cucumber season

No month of the season averages above the cucumber card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 27.9 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: October (16 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in May, June and August–October (7.4–17.3 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	20.6	9.9	105	12	14:39
June	26.5	16.2	107	12	15:21
July	27.9	18.4	99	11	15:04
August	26.7	17.3	79	10	13:59
September	23.6	14.3	90	8	12:33
October	16	7.4	85	10	11:06

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Cucumber in nearby cities

3 of the nearest cities share Madison's date.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Rockford	94 km	28 May – 13 August	same day
Milwaukee	121 km	28 May – 17 August	same day
Davenport	195 km	17 May – 15 August	11 days earlier
Green Bay	196 km	27 May – 15 August	1 day earlier
Chicago	196 km	28 May – 22 August	same day
Cedar Rapids	224 km	20 May – 10 August	8 days earlier

Where to buy cucumber plants and seeds near Madison

Buy plants ready to set out from 28 May to 12 August (from 7 May to 12 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 9 April to 15 July. Within 15 km of Madison OpenStreetMap lists 8 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 3 plant nurseries, 19 markets and 1 farm shop (collected 20 October 2026).

Jung Garden Center — garden centre
Northport Drive 1313 · 8 km
Fitchburg Center Farmers' Market — market
East Cheryl Parkway 5511, 53711 Fitchburg · Thu 15:00–18:00 · 8 km · fitchburgcenter.com
Eastside Farmers' Market — market
South Ingersoll Street 202, 53703 Madison · Tue 16:00–19:00 · 3 km · EASTSIDEFARMERSMARKET.ORG
Westside Community Market — market
South Rosa Road 505, Madison · Sat 07:00–12:30 · 6 km · westsidecommunitymarket.org

Each window starts on the Greenly calendar date and ends on the last day that still leaves the crop’s days to harvest (from its card) before the average first autumn frost, plus six weeks of picking for crops harvested over weeks (tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, cucumbers, courgettes, pumpkins, watermelons, beans) — our rule; earlier in the window is safer.

Questions