When to plant tomatoes in Charleston, West Virginia: 20 April – 18 July

In Charleston, West Virginia, tomato: sow for seedlings from 6 February to 27 May; plant into a greenhouse from 30 March to 18 July; plant out into open ground from 20 April to 18 July. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Green's Feed & Seed (farm supply, 1 km) and Stinger Produce Market (farm shop, 12 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Charleston, West Virginia: soil, season and weather

In Charleston, West Virginia the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 10 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 20 April, 10 days later.

Last spring frost	10 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	20 April, 10 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	30 March – 18 July; March outside: 3.4 °C at night, 15 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	7 November, 201 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	29 June – 26 September
Days left for picking	131
Daylight	11:15 on 27 February, 13:22 on 20 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 10 rainy days

Tomato in Charleston, West Virginia: care after planting

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

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

20 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
18 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 Charleston, West Virginia during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June (27.8 °C), July (30 °C) and August (28.8 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: November (13.9 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in April, May and October, November (3.8–13.1 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	19.4	7.7	99	13	13:11
May	23.2	13.1	141	17	14:14
June	27.8	17.2	118	14	14:49
July	30	19.9	122	15	14:36
August	28.8	18.8	104	14	13:41
September	26.4	16.1	91	9	12:28
October	20.8	10.3	82	9	11:15
November	13.9	3.8	74	10	10:07

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant tomato later than Charleston, West Virginia; the closest date is in Cincinnati, 2 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Columbus	214 km	4 May – 13 July	14 days later
Lexington	252 km	28 April – 18 July	8 days later
Cincinnati	264 km	22 April – 20 July	2 days later
Dayton	271 km	4 May – 20 July	14 days later
Pittsburgh	271 km	7 May – 20 July	17 days later
Frankfort	283 km	22 April – 14 July	2 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Charleston, West Virginia

Buy plants ready to set out from 20 April to 18 July (from 30 March to 18 July for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 6 February to 27 May. Within 15 km of Charleston, West Virginia OpenStreetMap lists 1 garden centre, 1 farm-supply shop, 3 markets and 1 farm shop (collected 28 October 2026).

Green's Feed & Seed — farm supply
Piedmont Road 314, Charleston · Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00; Sat 08:00–14:00 · 1 km · greensfeed.com
East End Bazaar — market
Washington Street East 1429, 25301 Charleston · Sat 10:00–15:00 · 1 km · charlestonwv.com
Stinger Produce Market — farm shop
Archibald Drive 16, 25112 Institute · 12 km
Valley Gardens — garden centre
1 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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