When to plant tomatoes in New Orleans: 29 January – 25 August

In New Orleans, tomato: sow for seedlings from 17 November to 4 July; plant into a greenhouse from 8 January to 25 August; plant out into open ground from 29 January to 25 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Urban Roots Garden Center (garden centre, 3 km) and Walmart Garden Center (garden centre, 7 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in New Orleans: soil, season and weather

In New Orleans frost, not soil, sets the date: the top 7 cm of soil warms to 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — around 19 January, 3 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	19 January, 3 days before the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	8 January – 25 August; January outside: 8.5 °C at night, 16.6 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	15 December, 320 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	9 April – 3 November
Days left for picking	250
Daylight	10:17 on 8 December, 10:42 on 29 January
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 8 rainy days

Tomato in New Orleans: 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 New Orleans during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in May–September (28.6–31.2 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in November–March (8.5–14.6 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
January	16.6	8.5	115	11	10:25
February	20.2	11.8	118	12	11:08
March	22.7	14.6	130	12	11:57
April	25.1	17	110	12	12:53
May	28.6	21.1	155	14	13:39
June	30.8	24.1	208	19	14:04
July	31.2	25.1	226	23	13:54
August	31.2	25.4	230	21	13:15
September	29.8	23.5	150	15	12:22
October	26.4	19.2	102	9	11:29
November	21.5	13.9	79	8	10:40
December	18.6	11.1	138	11	10:14

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant tomato later than New Orleans; the closest date is in Mobile, 2 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Gulfport	108 km	14 February – 4 August	16 days later
Baton Rouge	119 km	13 February – 19 August	15 days later
Lafayette	189 km	26 February – 16 August	28 days later
Mobile	206 km	31 January – 25 August	2 days later
Jackson	261 km	3 March – 8 August	33 days later
Pensacola	280 km	2 February – 29 August	4 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near New Orleans

Buy plants ready to set out from 29 January to 25 August (from 8 January to 25 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 17 November to 4 July. Within 15 km of New Orleans OpenStreetMap lists 7 garden centres, 3 markets and 1 farm shop (collected 20 October 2026).

Urban Roots Garden Center — garden centre
Tchoupitoulas Street 2375, 70130 New Orleans · Mon–Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun 11:00–17:00 · 3 km · urbanrootsnola.com
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
West Judge Perez Drive 8101, 70043 Chalmette · Mon–Sun 06:00–22:00 · 9 km · walmart.com
Perino's Home & Garden Center — garden centre
Veterans Memorial Boulevard 3100 · Mon–Sun 10:00–21:00 · 9 km · perinos.com
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
Chef Menteur Highway 4301, 70126 New Orleans · 7 km · walmart.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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