When to plant watermelons in Anchorage: 7 July – 16 August

In Anchorage, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 19 May to 19 July; plant into a greenhouse from 16 June to 16 August; plant out into open ground from 7 July to 16 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Jonny's Produce (farm shop, 7 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Anchorage: soil, season and weather

In Anchorage the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 30 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 7 July, 68 days later. 99 days separate planting out (7 July) from the first autumn frost (14 October); the card's 59 days to the first harvest leave 40 for picking, so a start 5 weeks late would still fit.

Last spring frost	30 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	7 July, 68 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	16 June – 16 August; June outside: 10.4 °C at night, 17.3 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	14 October, 99 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	4 September – 14 October
Days left for picking	40
Daylight	19:07 on 9 June, 18:59 on 7 July
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, July, has 12 rainy days

The same dates in Anchorage hold for Cucumber, Bell Pepper, Eggplant, Zucchini and Pumpkin.

Watermelon in Anchorage: care after planting

Planted on 7 July: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

7 July — feed: balanced (NPK)

Pests and diseases of watermelon 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 Anchorage during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 18.9 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: August (17.9 °C), September (13.8 °C) and October (7.1 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in every month of the season, from 1.5 °C to 12.9 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
July	18.9	12.9	81	12	18:31
August	17.9	12	116	16	15:55
September	13.8	7.8	119	17	13:00
October	7.1	1.5	96	13	10:10

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Anchorage, Juneau is 34 days earlier and Whitehorse 2 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Fairbanks	417 km	19 June – 26 July	18 days earlier
Whitehorse	801 km	9 July – 31 July	2 days later
Juneau	923 km	3 June – 27 June	34 days earlier
Yellowknife	1,846 km	30 June – 6 August	7 days earlier
Vancouver	2,129 km	22 June – 8 August	15 days earlier
Victoria	2,189 km	13 June – 11 September	24 days earlier

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Anchorage

Buy plants ready to set out from 7 July to 16 August (from 16 June to 16 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 19 May to 19 July. Within 15 km of Anchorage OpenStreetMap lists 5 garden centres, 9 markets and 1 farm shop (collected 20 October 2026).

South Anchorage Farmers Market — market
O'Malley Centre Drive 11111, 99515 Anchorage · 11 km · safm.org
APU Spring Creek Farm Stand — market
Wed 03:00–18:00 · 6 km
Jonny's Produce — farm shop
East Dowling Road 1721, 99507 Anchorage · Mon–Fri 09:00–18:00; Sat–Sun 09:00–16:00 · 7 km · johnnysproduce.com
Far North Garden Supply — garden centre
7 km

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.

Questions