When to plant watermelons in Essen: 3 June – 12 August

In Essen, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 15 April to 15 July; plant into a greenhouse from 13 May to 12 August; plant out into open ground from 3 June to 12 August.

Watermelon in Essen: soil, season and weather

In Essen the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 6 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 3 June, 58 days later.

Last spring frost	6 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	3 June, 58 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	13 May – 12 August; May outside: 9 °C at night, 19 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	21 November, 171 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	1 August – 10 October
Days left for picking	112
Daylight	15:06 on 6 May, 16:21 on 3 June
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, August, has 13 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Essen: care after planting

Planted on 3 June: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

3 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 Essen during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, August, averages 24.1 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: October (15.5 °C) and November (9.7 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in every month of the season, from 4.3 °C to 14.7 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
June	23.2	13.5	72	11	16:36
July	23.7	14.4	73	13	16:12
August	24.1	14.7	66	13	14:39
September	20.4	11.8	80	11	12:42
October	15.5	9.1	87	14	10:45
November	9.7	4.3	69	13	8:54

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Essen, Münster is 2 days earlier and Dortmund 2 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Bochum	15 km	3 June – 11 August	same day
Duisburg	18 km	3 June – 13 August	same day
Düsseldorf	30 km	3 June – 12 August	same day
Dortmund	32 km	5 June – 7 August	2 days later
Cologne	58 km	3 June – 11 August	same day
Münster	70 km	1 June – 12 August	2 days earlier

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Essen

Buy plants ready to set out from 3 June to 12 August (from 13 May to 12 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 15 April to 15 July. Within 15 km of Essen OpenStreetMap lists 49 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 5 plant nurseries, 43 markets and 27 farm shops (collected 28 October 2026).

Höntroper Töpfermarkt — market
Sept: Sun[–1] 11:00–18:00; Sept: Sun[–1] - 1 day 11:00–17:00 · 11 km · höntroper-töpfermarkt.de
Altmarkt — market
24/7 · 11 km
Markt Kettwig — market
Tue 08:00–13:00; Fri 08:00–13:00 · 12 km · wochenmaerkte-essen.de
Wochenmarkt Wanne-Süd — market
Apr–Oct: Sat 07:30–13:00; Nov–Mar: 08:00–13:00 · 13 km · herne.de

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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