When to plant tomatoes in Bloemfontein: 4 September – 12 February

In Bloemfontein, tomato: sow for seedlings from 23 June to 22 December; plant into a greenhouse from 14 August to 12 February; plant out into open ground from 4 September to 12 February.

Tomato in Bloemfontein: soil, season and weather

In Bloemfontein the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 17 August, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 4 September, 18 days later.

Last spring frost	17 August
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	4 September, 18 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	14 August – 12 February; August outside: 3.5 °C at night, 20.2 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	3 June, 273 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	13 November – 22 April
Days left for picking	203
Daylight	10:26 on 14 July, 11:35 on 4 September
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, June, has 1 rainy day

Tomato in Bloemfontein: care after planting

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

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

4 September — feed: balanced (NPK)
2 October — 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 Bloemfontein during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in October–March (27.3–29.8 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in February–June and September–December (2.1–15.9 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
September	25	8.1	14	3	11:54
October	27.3	11	34	5	12:46
November	28.6	13.2	57	7	13:34
December	29.7	15.4	63	10	13:59
January	29.8	16.5	74	9	13:48
February	28.6	15.9	65	9	13:06
March	27.3	13.9	49	8	12:18
April	22.8	9.8	75	8	11:24
May	20.1	5.6	19	3	10:41
June	17.2	2.1	9	1	10:17

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant tomato earlier than Bloemfontein; the closest date is in Johannesburg, 14 days earlier.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Johannesburg	372 km	21 August – 13 February	14 days earlier
Pretoria	423 km	from 6 August	29 days earlier
Lages	7,337 km	21 August – 3 March	14 days earlier
Curitiba	7,339 km	from 26 July	40 days earlier
Caxias do Sul	7,360 km	20 July – 25 February	46 days earlier
Ponta Grossa	7,436 km	26 July – 4 March	40 days earlier

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Bloemfontein

Buy plants ready to set out from 4 September to 12 February (from 14 August to 12 February for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 23 June to 22 December. Within 15 km of Bloemfontein OpenStreetMap lists 1 garden centre, 1 farm-supply shop and 3 markets (collected 20 October 2026).

Villa Avianto — market
Spesery Avenue 40, 9301 Bloemfontein · Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00; Sat 07:00–13:00; Sun closed · 6 km · villa-avianto.co.za
Pretty Gardens Nursery — garden centre
7 km · prettygardenslc.co.za
Bainsvlei No S389 — farm supply
12 km
Fresh Produce 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.

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