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

In Columbus, eggplant: sow for seedlings from 28 February to 14 May; plant into a greenhouse from 29 April to 13 July; plant out into open ground from 20 May to 13 July. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Mini Super (farm shop, 1 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Eggplant in Columbus: soil, season and weather

In Columbus the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 22 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the eggplant card — only around 20 May, 28 days later.

Last spring frost	22 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	20 May, 28 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	29 April – 13 July; April outside: 5.7 °C at night, 17.1 °C by day; card 21–29 °C
First autumn frost	2 November, 166 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	29 July – 21 September
Days left for picking	96
Daylight	12:10 on 21 March, 14:31 on 20 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, September, has 9 rainy days

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

Eggplant in Columbus: care after planting

Planted on 20 May: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

20 May — feed: balanced (NPK)
17 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 Columbus during the eggplant season

Days average above the eggplant card's 21–29 °C in July (29.4 °C). Months that stay below 21 °C even by day on average: October (19.3 °C) and November (11.2 °C). Nights average below 21 °C in every month of the season, from 2.1 °C to 19.5 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	22.6	12	126	16	14:22
June	27.4	16.8	119	13	14:59
July	29.4	19.5	128	14	14:45
August	28.3	18.3	100	12	13:47
September	26	15.5	78	9	12:30
October	19.3	9.3	86	9	11:12
November	11.2	2.1	79	9	10:00

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Eggplant in nearby cities

Around Columbus, Cincinnati is 7 days earlier and Cleveland 8 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Dayton	104 km	16 May – 20 July	4 days earlier
Cincinnati	159 km	13 May – 20 July	7 days earlier
Toledo (United States)	193 km	24 May – 18 July	4 days later
Cleveland	203 km	28 May – 1 August	8 days later
Charleston, West Virginia	214 km	15 May – 18 July	5 days earlier
Fort Wayne	220 km	21 May – 13 July	1 day later

Where to buy eggplant plants and seeds near Columbus

Buy plants ready to set out from 20 May to 13 July (from 29 April to 13 July for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 28 February to 14 May. Within 15 km of Columbus OpenStreetMap lists 9 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 9 markets and 2 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Mini Super — farm shop
Spruce Street 59, 43215 Columbus · Sun, Mon 10:00–17:00; Tue–Sat 09:00–19:00 · 1 km
Garden Ridge — garden centre
13 km
Meijer Garden Center — garden centre
13 km
Strader's Garden Center — garden centre
15 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