When to plant tomatoes in Dover: 17 April – 6 August

In Dover, tomato: sow for seedlings from 3 February to 15 June; plant into a greenhouse from 27 March to 6 August; plant out into open ground from 17 April to 6 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Lancaster County Farmers Market (farm shop, 1 km) and Tractor Supply Co (farm shop, 7 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Dover: soil, season and weather

In Dover the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 28 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 17 April, 20 days later.

Last spring frost	28 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	17 April, 20 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	27 March – 6 August; March outside: 3.6 °C at night, 12.6 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	26 November, 223 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	26 June – 15 October
Days left for picking	153
Daylight	11:06 on 24 February, 13:17 on 17 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 7 rainy days

Tomato in Dover: care after planting

Planted on 17 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

17 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
15 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 Dover during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June (27.2 °C), July (29.9 °C) and August (28.5 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: November (13.6 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in April, May and October, November (5.9–13.7 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	17.7	8.6	107	11	13:13
May	22	13.7	133	13	14:18
June	27.2	19	101	11	14:54
July	29.9	22.5	167	14	14:40
August	28.5	21.4	134	13	13:44
September	25.5	18.5	127	11	12:29
October	20.3	12.6	96	8	11:13
November	13.6	5.9	72	7	10:03

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Dover, Washington, D.C. is 2 days earlier and Trenton 16 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Annapolis	87 km	20 April – 30 July	3 days later
Philadelphia	93 km	29 April – 22 July	12 days later
Baltimore	95 km	16 April – 2 August	1 day earlier
Atlantic City	97 km	24 April – 2 August	7 days later
Washington, D.C.	134 km	15 April – 27 July	2 days earlier
Trenton	134 km	3 May – 23 July	16 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Dover

Buy plants ready to set out from 17 April to 6 August (from 27 March to 6 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 3 February to 15 June. Within 15 km of Dover OpenStreetMap lists 1 market and 2 farm shops (collected 28 October 2026).

Spence's Bazaar — market
South New Street 550, 19904 · Tue, Fri 07:30–17:00; Sat 07:30–15:00 · 1 km
Lancaster County Farmers Market — farm shop
South New Street 544, 19904 · Tue, Fri 07:00–17:00; Sat 07:00–15:00 · 1 km
Tractor Supply Co — farm shop
South Dupont Highway 4089, 19901 · Mon–Sat 08:00–20:00; Sun 09:00–19:00 · 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.

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