When to plant eggplants in Cincinnati: 13 May – 20 July

In Cincinnati, eggplant: sow for seedlings from 21 February to 21 May; plant into a greenhouse from 22 April to 20 July; plant out into open ground from 13 May to 20 July.

Eggplant in Cincinnati: soil, season and weather

In Cincinnati the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 11 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the eggplant card — only around 13 May, 32 days later.

Last spring frost	11 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	13 May, 32 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	22 April – 20 July; April outside: 7 °C at night, 18.1 °C by day; card 21–29 °C
First autumn frost	9 November, 180 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	22 July – 28 September
Days left for picking	110
Daylight	11:51 on 14 March, 14:14 on 13 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, September, has 7 rainy days

The same dates in Cincinnati hold for Cucumber, Bell Pepper, Zucchini, Pumpkin and Watermelon.

Eggplant in Cincinnati: care after planting

Planted on 13 May: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

13 May — feed: balanced (NPK)
10 June — feed: nitrogen

Pests and diseases of eggplant 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 Cincinnati during the eggplant season

Days average above the eggplant card's 21–29 °C in July (30.1 °C). Months that stay below 21 °C even by day on average: October (20.1 °C) and November (12 °C). Nights average below 21 °C in every month of the season, from 3 °C to 20.2 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	23.3	13	125	15	14:18
June	28.3	17.8	99	12	14:54
July	30.1	20.2	109	13	14:40
August	28.9	19.1	83	12	13:44
September	26.6	16.4	75	7	12:29
October	20.1	10.1	76	10	11:14
November	12	3	76	9	10:04

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Eggplant in nearby cities

Around Cincinnati, Louisville is 6 days earlier and Columbus 7 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Dayton	75 km	16 May – 20 July	3 days later
Frankfort	108 km	13 May – 14 July	same day
Lexington	127 km	15 May – 18 July	2 days later
Louisville	146 km	7 May – 22 July	6 days earlier
Indianapolis	159 km	16 May – 17 July	3 days later
Columbus	159 km	20 May – 13 July	7 days later

Where to buy eggplant plants and seeds near Cincinnati

Buy plants ready to set out from 13 May to 20 July (from 22 April to 20 July for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 21 February to 21 May. Within 15 km of Cincinnati OpenStreetMap lists 10 garden centres, 6 markets and 2 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Evans Landscaping — garden centre
14 km
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
9 km
Farmer's Market — market
2 km
Dee Felice Market — market
5 km

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