When to plant tomatoes in Santa Barbara: 11 April – 25 August

In Santa Barbara, tomato: sow for seedlings from 28 January to 4 July; plant into a greenhouse from 21 March to 25 August; plant out into open ground from 11 April to 25 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include 7 Day Nursery (garden centre, 4 km) and La Sumida Nursery (garden centre, 10 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Santa Barbara: soil, season and weather

In Santa Barbara the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 15 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — only around 11 April, 27 days later.

Last spring frost	15 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	11 April, 27 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	21 March – 25 August; March outside: 4.6 °C at night, 15.7 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	15 December, 248 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	20 June – 3 November
Days left for picking	178
Daylight	11:03 on 18 February, 12:54 on 11 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, July, has 0 rainy days

Tomato in Santa Barbara: care after planting

Planted on 11 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

11 April — feed: balanced (NPK)
9 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 Santa Barbara during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in July (28.8 °C) and August (29.1 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: December (15.7 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in April–June and September–December (4.9–15 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	19.6	7.5	29	3	13:02
May	21.2	9.4	13	2	13:57
June	25.7	13.8	3	1	14:27
July	28.8	17	0	0	14:15
August	29.1	17.1	3	1	13:28
September	26.8	15	10	2	12:25
October	23.7	11.3	20	1	11:22
November	19	7.1	46	4	10:23
December	15.7	4.9	112	6	9:52

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant tomato earlier than Santa Barbara; the closest date is in San Jose, 5 days earlier.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Bakersfield	122 km	16 March – 24 August	26 days earlier
Riverside	218 km	24 February – 29 August	46 days earlier
Fresno	259 km	15 March – 15 August	27 days earlier
San Jose	380 km	from 6 April	5 days earlier
Ensenada	405 km	23 February – 24 August	47 days earlier
Stockton	419 km	1 April – 13 August	10 days earlier

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Santa Barbara

Buy plants ready to set out from 11 April to 25 August (from 21 March to 25 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 28 January to 4 July. Within 15 km of Santa Barbara OpenStreetMap lists 4 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 2 plant nurseries, 1 market and 1 farm shop (collected 28 October 2026).

7 Day Nursery — garden centre
State Street 3301, 93105 Santa Barbara · Mon–Sun 09:00–18:00+ · 4 km · 7daynursery.com
La Sumida Nursery — garden centre
South Patterson Avenue 165, 93111 Santa Barbara · Mon–Sat 08:00–17:00; Sun 10:00–16:00 · 10 km · lasumida.com
Terra Sol Garden Center — garden centre
Overpass Road 5320, 93111 Santa Barbara · 09:00–17:00 · 10 km · terrasolgardencenter.com
Island Seed & Feed — garden centre
South Fairview Avenue 29, 93117 Goleta · Mon–Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun closed · 12 km · islandseed.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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