When to plant tomatoes in Louisville: 16 April – 22 July

In Louisville, tomato: sow for seedlings from 2 February to 31 May; plant into a greenhouse from 26 March to 22 July; plant out into open ground from 16 April to 22 July. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Grant Line Nursery & Garden Center (garden centre, 9 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Louisville: soil, season and weather

In Louisville the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 6 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 16 April, 10 days later.

Last spring frost	6 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	16 April, 10 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	26 March – 22 July; March outside: 4 °C at night, 15 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	11 November, 209 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	25 June – 30 September
Days left for picking	139
Daylight	11:05 on 23 February, 13:13 on 16 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 8 rainy days

Tomato in Louisville: care after planting

Planted on 16 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

16 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
14 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 Louisville during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June–September (27.6–31 °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 (4.1–14.1 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	19.6	8.2	138	12	13:10
May	24.5	14.1	118	14	14:14
June	29.3	18.7	106	11	14:49
July	31	21.3	129	14	14:35
August	29.8	20.1	86	11	13:41
September	27.6	17.2	91	7	12:28
October	21.3	11.3	95	9	11:15
November	13.6	4.1	85	8	10:07

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Louisville, Bowling Green is 5 days earlier and Indianapolis 18 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Frankfort	78 km	22 April – 14 July	6 days later
Lexington	116 km	28 April – 18 July	12 days later
Cincinnati	146 km	22 April – 20 July	6 days later
Bowling Green	153 km	11 April – 21 July	5 days earlier
Evansville	159 km	16 April – 21 July	same day
Indianapolis	173 km	4 May – 17 July	18 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Louisville

Buy plants ready to set out from 16 April to 22 July (from 26 March to 22 July for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 2 February to 31 May. Within 15 km of Louisville OpenStreetMap lists 1 garden centre, 1 farm-supply shop, 1 plant nursery and 7 markets (collected 20 October 2026).

Grant Line Nursery & Garden Center — garden centre
Grant Line Road 2223, 47150 New Albany · Mon–Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun closed · 9 km · grantlinegarden.com
New Albany Farmers' Market — market
East Market Street 202, 47150 New Albany · Sun–Fri closed; Apr–Sept Sat 08:00–12:00; Oct–Mar Sat 10:00–12:00 · 7 km · namainstreet.org
El Rey Market — market
National Turnpike 7600, 40214 Louisville · Mon–Sun 08:00–22:00 · 12 km
Jeffersonville Farmers' Market — market
Jun–Oct Sat 09:00–12:00; Sun–Fri closed; Nov–May closed · 3 km · jeffmainstreet.org

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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