When to plant watermelons in Ipswich: 14 June – 20 August

In Ipswich, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 26 April to 23 July; plant into a greenhouse from 24 May to 20 August; plant out into open ground from 14 June to 20 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Laurel Farm Garden Centre & Farm Shop (garden centre, 3 km) and Kiln Farm Nursery (garden centre, 5 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Ipswich: soil, season and weather

In Ipswich the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 15 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 14 June, 91 days later.

Last spring frost	15 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	14 June, 91 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	24 May – 20 August; May outside: 9 °C at night, 15.9 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	29 November, 168 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	12 August – 18 October
Days left for picking	109
Daylight	15:46 on 17 May, 16:42 on 14 June
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, September, has 10 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Ipswich: care after planting

Planted on 14 June: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

14 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 Ipswich during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, August, averages 21.6 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: October (15.3 °C) and November (10.9 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in every month of the season, from 6 °C to 14.6 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
June	19.4	12.6	60	10	16:43
July	21.4	14.4	61	12	16:18
August	21.6	14.6	54	10	14:43
September	19.1	12.6	49	10	12:43
October	15.3	9.8	76	12	10:44
November	10.9	6	63	10	8:50

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Ipswich, London is 2 days earlier and Brighton 36 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Norwich	64 km	27 June – 19 August	13 days later
Cambridge	73 km	17 June – 15 August	3 days later
London	108 km	12 June – 14 August	2 days earlier
Brighton	164 km	20 July – 22 August	36 days later
Leicester	168 km	21 June – 10 August	7 days later
Oxford	170 km	23 June – 14 August	9 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Ipswich

Buy plants ready to set out from 14 June to 20 August (from 24 May to 20 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 26 April to 23 July. Within 15 km of Ipswich OpenStreetMap lists 8 garden centres, 1 market and 3 farm shops (collected 28 October 2026).

Laurel Farm Garden Centre & Farm Shop — garden centre
Henley Road, IP1 6TE Ipswich · Mon–Sat 08:00–17:00; Sun 10:00–16:00 · 3 km · laurelfarmgardencentre.co.uk
Kiln Farm Nursery — garden centre
Mon–Sat 09:00–17:00; Sun 10:00–16:00 · 5 km · kilnfarm.com
Bypass Nurseries — garden centre
London Road, IP9 2JR Capel St. Mary · 10 km · bypassnurseries.co.uk
Dobbies — garden centre
Grundisburgh Road, IP13 6HX · 10 km · dobbies.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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