When to plant watermelons in Derby: 22 June – 13 August

In Derby, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 4 May to 16 July; plant into a greenhouse from 1 June to 13 August; plant out into open ground from 22 June to 13 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Bryer's Heritage Farm Shop (farm shop, 3 km) and The Farm Shop (farm shop, 11 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Derby: soil, season and weather

In Derby the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 12 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 22 June, 71 days later.

Last spring frost	12 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	22 June, 71 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	1 June – 13 August; June outside: 10.7 °C at night, 19.2 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	22 November, 153 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	20 August – 11 October
Days left for picking	94
Daylight	16:17 on 25 May, 16:55 on 22 June
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, August, has 12 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Derby: care after planting

Planted on 22 June: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

22 June — 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 Derby during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 20.9 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: September (17.8 °C), October (13.9 °C) and November (9.5 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in every month of the season, from 4.2 °C to 12.6 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
June	19.2	10.7	70	12	16:53
July	20.9	12.6	76	14	16:27
August	20.4	12.4	67	12	14:48
September	17.8	10.3	80	13	12:45
October	13.9	7.9	86	14	10:41
November	9.5	4.2	75	13	8:44

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Derby, Nottingham is 2 days earlier and Sheffield 7 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Nottingham	22 km	20 June – 14 August	2 days earlier
Leicester	39 km	21 June – 10 August	1 day earlier
Stoke-on-Trent	48 km	20 June – 6 August	2 days earlier
Sheffield	51 km	29 June – 13 August	7 days later
Birmingham	55 km	20 June – 10 August	2 days earlier
Coventry	57 km	21 June – 8 August	1 day earlier

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Derby

Buy plants ready to set out from 22 June to 13 August (from 1 June to 13 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 4 May to 16 July. Within 15 km of Derby OpenStreetMap lists 19 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 1 plant nursery, 5 markets and 13 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

The Farm Shop — farm shop
Stevens Lane 23, DE72 3BU Derby · 11 km
Heaths Farm Shop and Nursery — farm shop
Mon, Wed–Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun 10:00–16:00 · 12 km · heathsfarmshop.co.uk
Trinity Farm — farm shop
Phoenix Mills, NG10 2AA Nottingham · 14 km · trinityfarm.co.uk
Bryer's Heritage Farm Shop — farm shop
Markeaton Lane, DE22 4NH Derby · 3 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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