When to plant tomatoes in Gainesville: 29 January – 3 September

In Gainesville, tomato: sow for seedlings from 17 November to 13 July; plant into a greenhouse from 8 January to 3 September; plant out into open ground from 29 January to 3 September. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Garden Gate Nursery (garden centre, 6 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Gainesville: soil, season and weather

In Gainesville frost, not soil, sets the date: the top 7 cm of soil warms to 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — around 10 January, 12 days before the last frost on 22 January, so planting waits only for the week after that frost.

Last spring frost	22 January
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	10 January, 12 days before the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	8 January – 3 September; January outside: 8.3 °C at night, 18.8 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	24 December, 329 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	9 April – 12 November
Days left for picking	259
Daylight	10:18 on 8 December, 10:43 on 29 January
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 6 rainy days

Tomato in Gainesville: care after planting

Planted on 29 January: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

29 January — feed: balanced (NPK)
26 February — 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 Gainesville during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in April–October (27.6–32.6 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in November–April (8.3–15.7 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
January	18.8	8.3	62	8	10:26
February	22.6	11.5	60	8	11:09
March	24.8	13	73	8	11:57
April	27.6	15.7	76	8	12:52
May	30.7	19	85	10	13:38
June	32	22.3	162	19	14:02
July	32.6	23.3	187	23	13:53
August	32.1	23.3	191	24	13:14
September	30.7	21.9	144	18	12:22
October	27.7	18.2	65	9	11:29
November	23.6	13.4	56	6	10:41
December	20.8	10.7	63	7	10:15

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Gainesville, Orlando is 4 days earlier and Savannah 19 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Jacksonville	99 km	30 January – 6 September	1 day later
Orlando	154 km	25 January – 4 September	4 days earlier
Tampa	189 km	25 January – 3 September	4 days earlier
St. Petersburg	206 km	from 25 January	4 days earlier
Tallahassee	207 km	29 January – 2 September	same day
Savannah	295 km	17 February – 3 September	19 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Gainesville

Buy plants ready to set out from 29 January to 3 September (from 8 January to 3 September for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 17 November to 13 July. Within 15 km of Gainesville OpenStreetMap lists 1 garden centre, 1 plant nursery and 4 markets (collected 28 October 2026).

Garden Gate Nursery — garden centre
Northwest 43rd Street 2406, 32606 · 6 km · gardengatenursery.net
Grove Street Farmers Market — market
Northwest 4th Street 1001, 32601 Gainesville · Mon 16:00–19:00 · 1 km · grovestreetfarmersmarket.com
GNV Market — market
South Main Street 619, 32601 Gainesville · Thu 16:00–19:00 · 1 km
Alachua County Farmer's Market — market
Sat 08:30–13:00 · 7 km · 441market.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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