When to plant tomatoes in Ferrara: 14 April – 8 August

In Ferrara, tomato: sow for seedlings from 31 January to 17 June; plant into a greenhouse from 24 March to 8 August; plant out into open ground from 14 April to 8 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Azienda Agricola "Le Delizie Pronte a Tavola" (farm shop, 2 km) and Azienda agricola Zaniboni Giorgio (farm shop, 4 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Ferrara: soil, season and weather

In Ferrara the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 21 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 14 April, 24 days later.

Last spring frost	21 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	14 April, 24 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	24 March – 8 August; March outside: 4.4 °C at night, 15.5 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	28 November, 228 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	23 June – 17 October
Days left for picking	158
Daylight	10:43 on 21 February, 13:25 on 14 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, June, has 8 rainy days

Tomato in Ferrara: care after planting

Planted on 14 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

14 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
12 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 Ferrara during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June (29.6 °C), July (32.1 °C) and August (31.6 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: November (13.7 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in April, May and September–November (5.9–15.8 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	19.4	8	58	9	13:28
May	23	12.8	119	14	14:49
June	29.6	18.2	57	8	15:34
July	32.1	20.4	59	8	15:16
August	31.6	20	58	8	14:06
September	26.2	15.8	82	8	12:35
October	20.8	11.4	63	9	11:02
November	13.7	5.9	85	11	9:36

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant tomato later than Ferrara; the closest date is in Bologna, 4 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Bologna	45 km	18 April – 9 August	4 days later
Modena	58 km	19 April – 10 August	5 days later
Ravenna	66 km	23 April – 22 August	9 days later
Padua	67 km	20 April – 8 August	6 days later
Mantua	74 km	19 April – 8 August	5 days later
Vicenza	79 km	30 April – 4 August	16 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Ferrara

Buy plants ready to set out from 14 April to 8 August (from 24 March to 8 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 31 January to 17 June. Within 15 km of Ferrara OpenStreetMap lists 3 garden centres, 1 market and 3 farm shops (collected 27 October 2026).

Mercato dell'Acquedotto — market
Piazza XXIV Maggio, 44121 Ferrara · Thu 07:00–13:00 · 1 km
Azienda Agricola "Le Delizie Pronte a Tavola" — farm shop
Via della Canapa 72, 44122 Ferrara · 2 km
La Campanella — farm shop
Via Provinciale 28, Voghiera · 12 km
Azienda agricola Zaniboni Giorgio — farm shop
Via dei Calzolai 243 · 4 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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