When to plant eggplants in Lecce: 3 May – 7 August

In Lecce, eggplant: sow for seedlings from 11 February to 8 June; plant into a greenhouse from 12 April to 7 August; plant out into open ground from 3 May to 7 August.

Eggplant in Lecce: soil, season and weather

In Lecce the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 16 February, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the eggplant card — only around 3 May, 76 days later.

Last spring frost	16 February
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	3 May, 76 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	12 April – 7 August; April outside: 9.8 °C at night, 19.8 °C by day; card 21–29 °C
First autumn frost	27 November, 208 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	12 July – 16 October
Days left for picking	138
Daylight	11:24 on 4 March, 13:59 on 3 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, July, has 3 rainy days

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

Eggplant in Lecce: care after planting

Planted on 3 May: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

3 May — feed: balanced (NPK)
31 May — 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 Lecce during the eggplant season

Days average above the eggplant card's 21–29 °C in June (30.3 °C), July (33.4 °C) and August (32.9 °C). Months that stay below 21 °C even by day on average: November (18.6 °C). Nights average below 21 °C in May, June and September–November (10.9–18.9 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	24	13.9	77	10	14:24
June	30.3	18.9	33	5	15:02
July	33.4	21.3	14	3	14:47
August	32.9	21.5	33	6	13:48
September	28.3	18.4	54	8	12:30
October	23.1	14.2	76	9	11:11
November	18.6	10.9	110	12	9:58

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Eggplant in nearby cities

Around Lecce, Foggia is 10 days earlier and Potenza 42 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Taranto	79 km	from 25 April	8 days earlier
Bari	139 km	from 4 May	1 day later
Cosenza	201 km	3 June – 10 August	31 days later
Potenza	202 km	14 June – 5 August	42 days later
Foggia	252 km	23 April – 30 August	10 days earlier
Salerno	288 km	7 June – 21 August	35 days later

Where to buy eggplant plants and seeds near Lecce

Buy plants ready to set out from 3 May to 7 August (from 12 April to 7 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 11 February to 8 June. Within 15 km of Lecce OpenStreetMap lists 1 garden centre, 7 markets and 2 farm shops (collected 27 October 2026).

Area Mercatale di Monteroni — market
Località Mercato · 7 km
Zoo garden — garden centre
14 km
Piazza Rita Levi Montalcini — market
3 km
Area Mercatale di Lizzanello — market
7 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