When to plant tomatoes in Baltimore: 16 April – 2 August

In Baltimore, tomato: sow for seedlings from 2 February to 11 June; plant into a greenhouse from 26 March to 2 August; plant out into open ground from 16 April to 2 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include B.Willow (garden centre, 4 km) and King Mulch (garden centre, 9 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Baltimore: soil, season and weather

In Baltimore the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 31 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 16 April, 16 days later.

Last spring frost	31 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	16 April, 16 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	26 March – 2 August; March outside: 3.4 °C at night, 12.3 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	22 November, 220 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	25 June – 11 October
Days left for picking	150
Daylight	11:03 on 23 February, 13:15 on 16 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 8 rainy days

Tomato in Baltimore: care after planting

Planted on 16 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

16 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
14 May — feed: nitrogen

Pests and diseases of tomato 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 Baltimore during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June (27.3 °C), July (30 °C) and August (28.5 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: November (13.1 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in April, May and October, November (5.6–13.9 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	17.5	8.6	111	11	13:13
May	21.9	13.9	163	14	14:19
June	27.3	19.2	139	13	14:55
July	30	22.5	191	16	14:41
August	28.5	21.4	162	13	13:44
September	25.5	18.4	146	11	12:29
October	19.7	12.4	102	9	11:13
November	13.1	5.6	88	8	10:03

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Baltimore, Washington, D.C. is 1 day earlier and Harrisburg 17 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Annapolis	37 km	20 April – 30 July	4 days later
Washington, D.C.	56 km	15 April – 27 July	1 day earlier
Dover	95 km	17 April – 6 August	1 day later
Hagerstown	104 km	28 April – 22 July	12 days later
Harrisburg	111 km	3 May – 22 July	17 days later
Philadelphia	144 km	29 April – 22 July	13 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Baltimore

Buy plants ready to set out from 16 April to 2 August (from 26 March to 2 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 2 February to 11 June. Within 15 km of Baltimore OpenStreetMap lists 8 garden centres, 4 plant nurseries, 20 markets and 3 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

King Mulch — garden centre
Pulaski Highway 7941, 21237 Rosedale · Mon–Fri 08:00–16:00; Sat 09:00–15:00 · 9 km · kingmulch.com
B.Willow — garden centre
West 27th Street 220, 21211 Baltimore · Mon–Sat 11:00–20:00; Sun 11:00–19:00 · 4 km
Poor Boy's — garden centre
Old Harford Road 7721, 21234 Parkville · Mon–Sat 09:00–19:00; Sun 09:00–17:00 · 11 km
Evergreen Gene's Garden Center — garden centre
Crain Highway South 401, 21061 Glen Burnie · 15 km · evergreengenes.com

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.

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