When to plant pumpkins in Baton Rouge: 3 March – 14 August

In Baton Rouge, pumpkin: sow for seedlings from 30 December to 3 July; plant into a greenhouse from 10 February to 14 August; plant out into open ground from 3 March to 14 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Louisiana Nursery (garden centre, 15 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Pumpkin in Baton Rouge: soil, season and weather

In Baton Rouge the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 6 February, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the pumpkin card — only around 3 March, 25 days later.

Last spring frost	6 February
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	3 March, 25 days after the last frost
First autumn frost	9 December, 281 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	75
First harvest, if planted in this window	17 May – 28 October
Days left for picking	206
Daylight	10:29 on 20 January, 11:35 on 3 March
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, October, has 8 rainy days

The same dates in Baton Rouge hold for Cucumber, Bell Pepper, Eggplant, Zucchini and Watermelon.

Pumpkin in Baton Rouge: care after planting

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

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

24 March — feed: nitrogen

Pests and diseases of pumpkin 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 Baton Rouge during the pumpkin season

About 1336 mm of rain falls in the season; October is the driest month (81 mm) and August the wettest (203 mm).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
March	22.9	13.1	129	12	11:57
April	25.4	15.5	132	11	12:54
May	29.4	19.9	147	12	13:41
June	31.8	23.2	141	16	14:06
July	32.5	24.4	166	20	13:56
August	32.5	24.3	203	18	13:16
September	30.9	22.2	113	12	12:23
October	27.4	17.5	81	8	11:28
November	21.8	11.8	88	9	10:38
December	18.6	9.3	136	12	10:12

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Pumpkin in nearby cities

Around Baton Rouge, New Orleans is 8 days earlier and Shreveport 17 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Lafayette	85 km	1 March – 11 August	2 days earlier
New Orleans	119 km	23 February – 20 August	8 days earlier
Gulfport	201 km	25 February – 30 July	6 days earlier
Jackson	227 km	16 March – 3 August	13 days later
Mobile	296 km	24 February – 20 August	7 days earlier
Shreveport	334 km	20 March – 14 August	17 days later

Where to buy pumpkin plants and seeds near Baton Rouge

Buy plants ready to set out from 3 March to 14 August (from 10 February to 14 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 30 December to 3 July. Within 15 km of Baton Rouge OpenStreetMap lists 3 garden centres, 1 plant nursery and 2 markets (collected 28 October 2026).

Louisiana Nursery — garden centre
Coursey Boulevard 13121, 70817 Baton Rouge · 15 km
Dominique's Livestock Market — market
Airline Highway 1462, 70805 Baton Rouge · Mon 12:00–14:00 · 6 km · dominiqueslivestock.com
Po Folks Fruits and Vegetables — market
North Lobdell Highway 1280, 70767 Port Allen · 7 km
Wholesale Palms — plant nursery
14 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