When to plant watermelons in Lafayette: 1 March – 27 August

In Lafayette, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 11 January to 30 July; plant into a greenhouse from 8 February to 27 August; plant out into open ground from 1 March to 27 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Urban Naturalist (garden centre, 1 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Lafayette: soil, season and weather

In Lafayette the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 19 February, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 1 March, 10 days later.

Last spring frost	19 February
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	1 March, 10 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	8 February – 27 August; February outside: 10.1 °C at night, 19.9 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	6 December, 280 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	29 April – 25 October
Days left for picking	221
Daylight	10:45 on 1 February, 11:32 on 1 March
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, October, has 8 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Lafayette: care after planting

Planted on 1 March: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

1 March — 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 Lafayette during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, August, averages 32.5 °C. Nights average below 18 °C in March, April and October–December (9.4–17.4 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
March	22.8	13.3	120	11	11:57
April	25.3	15.6	142	11	12:53
May	29	20	154	13	13:40
June	31.5	23.2	126	16	14:05
July	32.3	24.4	176	21	13:55
August	32.5	24.4	180	19	13:16
September	30.7	22	129	12	12:22
October	27.5	17.4	79	8	11:28
November	22	12	83	9	10:39
December	18.8	9.4	131	11	10:13

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Lafayette, New Orleans is 6 days earlier and Shreveport 19 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Baton Rouge	85 km	3 March – 30 August	2 days later
New Orleans	189 km	23 February – 5 September	6 days earlier
Gulfport	283 km	25 February – 15 August	4 days earlier
Jackson	290 km	16 March – 19 August	15 days later
Shreveport	300 km	20 March – 30 August	19 days later
Houston	327 km	24 February – 18 August	5 days earlier

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Lafayette

Buy plants ready to set out from 1 March to 27 August (from 8 February to 27 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 11 January to 30 July. Within 15 km of Lafayette OpenStreetMap lists 2 garden centres and 1 farm-supply shop (collected 28 October 2026).

Urban Naturalist — garden centre
Madison Street 216, 70501 Lafayette · Mon–Sun 10:00–18:00 · 1 km · urbannaturalist-105436.square.site
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
11 km
Northern Tool — farm supply
7 km · northerntool.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.

Questions