When to plant watermelons in Athlone: 13 July – 17 August

In Athlone, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 25 May to 20 July; plant into a greenhouse from 22 June to 17 August; plant out into open ground from 13 July to 17 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Fernhill Garden Centre (garden centre, 2 km) and Homeland Agri (farm supply, 3 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Athlone: soil, season and weather

In Athlone the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 25 February, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 13 July, 138 days later.

Last spring frost	25 February
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	13 July, 138 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	22 June – 17 August; June outside: 11 °C at night, 17.9 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	26 November, 136 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	10 September – 15 October
Days left for picking	77
Daylight	16:59 on 15 June, 16:37 on 13 July
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, November, has 14 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Athlone: care after planting

Planted on 13 July: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

13 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 Athlone during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 19 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: September (16.5 °C), October (13.4 °C) and November (10 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in every month of the season, from 5.5 °C to 12.5 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
July	19	12.5	91	15	16:32
August	18.6	12.4	111	16	14:51
September	16.5	10.6	92	16	12:45
October	13.4	8.5	109	16	10:40
November	10	5.5	88	14	8:40

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Athlone, Sligo is 13 days earlier and Dundalk 4 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Galway	76 km	13 July – 19 August	same day
Limerick	96 km	6 July – 12 August	7 days earlier
Kilkenny	97 km	15 July – 11 August	2 days later
Sligo	101 km	30 June – 12 August	13 days earlier
Dublin	112 km	16 July – 15 August	3 days later
Dundalk	120 km	17 July – 11 August	4 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Athlone

Buy plants ready to set out from 13 July to 17 August (from 22 June to 17 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 25 May to 20 July. Within 15 km of Athlone OpenStreetMap lists 3 garden centres, 2 farm-supply shops and 1 plant nursery (collected 20 October 2026).

Fernhill Garden Centre — garden centre
Mon–Sat 09:00–18:00, Sun 11:00–18:00 · 2 km · fernhill.ie
Homeland Agri — farm supply
Moydrum Business Park, N37 FY05 Athlone · 3 km
Mulveys — garden centre
4 km
B&Q Garden Centre — garden centre
2 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.

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