When to plant tomatoes in Richmond: 7 April – 27 July

In Richmond, tomato: sow for seedlings from 24 January to 5 June; plant into a greenhouse from 17 March to 27 July; plant out into open ground from 7 April to 27 July. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Southern States (farm supply, 12 km) and Hazel Witch Farm (plant nursery, 12 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Richmond: soil, season and weather

In Richmond the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 26 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 7 April, 12 days later.

Last spring frost	26 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	7 April, 12 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	17 March – 27 July; March outside: 5 °C at night, 16.1 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	16 November, 223 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	16 June – 5 October
Days left for picking	153
Daylight	10:46 on 14 February, 12:50 on 7 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, November, has 8 rainy days

Tomato in Richmond: care after planting

Planted on 7 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

7 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
5 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 Richmond during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June–September (27.5–32.6 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: November (15.5 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in April, May and October, November (5.7–14.7 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	21.5	9.7	86	9	13:09
May	25.1	14.7	115	12	14:11
June	29.9	19.1	96	10	14:44
July	32.6	22.2	108	13	14:31
August	30.5	21	105	12	13:38
September	27.5	18.1	104	9	12:28
October	21.7	12.2	87	7	11:16
November	15.5	5.7	68	8	10:10

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Richmond, Raleigh is 12 days earlier and Hagerstown 21 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Washington, D.C.	156 km	15 April – 27 July	8 days later
Annapolis	179 km	20 April – 30 July	13 days later
Baltimore	207 km	16 April – 2 August	9 days later
Raleigh	224 km	26 March – 30 July	12 days earlier
Hagerstown	231 km	28 April – 22 July	21 days later
Dover	246 km	17 April – 6 August	10 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Richmond

Buy plants ready to set out from 7 April to 27 July (from 17 March to 27 July for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 24 January to 5 June. Within 15 km of Richmond OpenStreetMap lists 6 garden centres, 4 farm-supply shops, 2 plant nurseries, 5 markets and 2 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Cross Creek Nursery & Landscaping Midlothian — garden centre
Courthouse Road 501, 23236 Richmond · Mon–Wed 08:00–17:00; Thu 08:00–19:00; Fri–Sat 08:00–17:00 · 14 km · crosscreeknursery.com
The Great Big Greenhouse — garden centre
Huguenot Road 2051, 23235 · 14 km
Hazel Witch Farm — plant nursery
Sledd Lane 4366, 23111 Mechanicsville · 12 km
Southern States — farm supply · sells seed
West Broad Street 8718, 23294 Richmond · Mon–Sat 08:00–18:00; Sun 10:00–17:00 · 12 km · southernstates.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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