When to plant tomatoes in Wilmington: 15 March – 11 August

In Wilmington, tomato: sow for seedlings from 1 January to 20 June; plant into a greenhouse from 22 February to 11 August; plant out into open ground from 15 March to 11 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Walmart Garden Center (garden centre, 4 km) and The Transplanted Garden (garden centre, 4 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Tomato in Wilmington: soil, season and weather

In Wilmington frost, not soil, sets the date: the top 7 cm of soil warms to 15 °C — the minimum on the tomato card — around 8 March, 0 days before the last frost on 8 March, so planting waits only for the week after that frost.

Last spring frost	8 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 15 °C	8 March, the day of the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	22 February – 11 August; February outside: 6.8 °C at night, 17.1 °C by day; card 16–27 °C
First autumn frost	1 December, 261 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	70
First harvest, if planted in this window	24 May – 20 October
Days left for picking	191
Daylight	10:16 on 22 January, 11:56 on 15 March
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, October, has 7 rainy days

Tomato in Wilmington: care after planting

Planted on 15 March: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

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

15 March — feed: balanced (NPK)
12 April — 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 Wilmington during the tomato season

Days average above the tomato card's 16–27 °C in June–September (28.3–31.2 °C). Months that stay below 16 °C even by day on average: December (15.4 °C). Nights average below 16 °C in March, April and October–December (6–15.2 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
March	19.6	9.2	86	10	11:56
April	23.3	12.9	93	9	13:01
May	26.9	17.5	129	13	13:56
June	29.7	21.1	138	16	14:25
July	31.2	23.5	168	21	14:14
August	30.3	22.7	207	18	13:27
September	28.3	20.2	227	12	12:25
October	24.1	15.2	70	7	11:22
November	19.1	9.3	78	7	10:24
December	15.4	6	118	9	9:53

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Tomato in nearby cities

Around Wilmington, Charleston is 32 days earlier and Richmond 23 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Raleigh	186 km	26 March – 30 July	11 days later
Charleston	247 km	11 February – 30 August	32 days earlier
Greensboro	269 km	30 March – 24 July	15 days later
Columbia	290 km	16 March – 9 August	1 day later
Charlotte	292 km	26 March – 24 July	11 days later
Richmond	373 km	7 April – 27 July	23 days later

Where to buy tomato plants and seeds near Wilmington

Buy plants ready to set out from 15 March to 11 August (from 22 February to 11 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 1 January to 20 June. Within 15 km of Wilmington OpenStreetMap lists 2 garden centres (collected 29 October 2026).

The Transplanted Garden — garden centre
South 16th Street 502, 28401 Wilmington · Feb 02–Oct 31: Mon–Fri 09:00–18:00; Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun 11:00–16:00; Nov 01–Feb 01: Mon–Fri 09:00–17:00; Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun 11:00–16:00 · 4 km · transplantedgarden.com
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
Sigmon Road 5226, 28403 Wilmington · 24/7 · 4 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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