When to plant tomatoes in Ghent: 13 May – 4 August

In Ghent, tomato: sow for seedlings from 1 March to 13 June; plant into a greenhouse from 22 April to 4 August; plant out into open ground from 13 May to 4 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Aveve (garden centre, 5 km) and De Korenbloem (garden centre, 11 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Ghent: soil, season and weather

In Ghent the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 12 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 13 May, 31 days later.

Last spring frost	12 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	13 May, 31 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	22 April – 4 August; April outside: 5.1 °C at night, 14.6 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	24 November, 195 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	22 July – 13 October
Days left for picking	125
Daylight	12:16 on 22 March, 15:26 on 13 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, May, has 11 rainy days

Tomato in Ghent: care after planting

Planted on 13 May: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

13 May — feed: balanced (NPK)
10 June — 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 Ghent during the tomato season

No month of the season averages above the tomato card's 16–27 °C by day; the warmest, August, averages 23.5 °C. Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: October (15.9 °C) and November (10.3 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in every month of the season, from 5 °C to 14.4 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	18.7	8.8	58	11	15:32
June	22.5	12.8	74	11	16:31
July	23.2	14	62	12	16:08
August	23.5	14.4	61	12	14:37
September	20.5	12	59	10	12:42
October	15.9	9.4	73	13	10:47
November	10.3	5	70	14	8:57

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Ghent, Antwerp is 3 days earlier and Bruges 3 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Bruges	39 km	16 May – 10 August	3 days later
Brussels	49 km	16 May – 2 August	3 days later
Antwerp	51 km	10 May – 2 August	3 days earlier
Lille	66 km	16 May – 1 August	3 days later
Mons	69 km	16 May – 30 July	3 days later
Leuven	71 km	10 May – 2 August	3 days earlier

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Ghent

Buy plants ready to set out from 13 May to 4 August (from 22 April to 4 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 1 March to 13 June. Within 15 km of Ghent OpenStreetMap lists 31 garden centres, 2 plant nurseries, 8 markets and 9 farm shops (collected 27 October 2026).

Aveve — garden centre
Mariakerksesteenweg 283, 9031 Drongen · Tue–Fri 09:00–18:30; Sat 09:00–18:00 · 5 km · aveve.be
De Korenbloem — garden centre
Damstraat 48a, 9850 · Tue–Sat 08:00–18:30; Sun 09:00–18:00 · 11 km · tuincentrumdekorenbloem.be
De Groene Vallei — garden centre
Stationsstraat 1A, 9810 Eke · Mon–Sat 09:30–18:30; Sun 09:30–16:00; Jul–Sept Sun 09:30–13:00; Tue closed · 12 km · degroenevallei.be
Aveve — garden centre
Zauwerstraat 11, 9270 Laarne · Mon 08:30–12:00; Tue–Fri 08:30–12:00, 13:30–18:30; Sat 08:30–17:30; Sun closed · 14 km · aveve.be

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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