When to plant watermelons in Lincoln: 11 May – 19 July

In Lincoln, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 23 March to 21 June; plant into a greenhouse from 20 April to 19 July; plant out into open ground from 11 May to 19 July.

Watermelon in Lincoln: soil, season and weather

In Lincoln the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 16 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 11 May, 25 days later.

Last spring frost	16 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	11 May, 25 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	20 April – 19 July; April outside: 5.8 °C at night, 18.3 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	28 October, 170 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	9 July – 16 September
Days left for picking	111
Daylight	13:11 on 13 April, 14:18 on 11 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, September, has 7 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Lincoln: care after planting

Planted on 11 May: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

11 May — 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 Lincoln during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 31.2 °C. Nights average below 18 °C in May (12.2 °C), September (16.6 °C) and October (8.5 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	23.5	12.2	128	13	14:26
June	30.6	19	101	10	15:05
July	31.2	20.8	76	8	14:50
August	29.9	19.5	74	9	13:50
September	27.3	16.6	59	7	12:31
October	19.3	8.5	67	7	11:10

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Lincoln, Topeka is 5 days earlier and Sioux Falls 13 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Omaha	79 km	17 May – 17 July	6 days later
Grand Island	143 km	18 May – 18 July	7 days later
Topeka	215 km	6 May – 20 July	5 days earlier
Kansas City	261 km	7 May – 23 July	4 days earlier
Des Moines	271 km	17 May – 18 July	6 days later
Sioux Falls	304 km	24 May – 12 July	13 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Lincoln

Buy plants ready to set out from 11 May to 19 July (from 20 April to 19 July for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 23 March to 21 June. Within 15 km of Lincoln OpenStreetMap lists 7 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 7 plant nurseries and 1 market (collected 28 October 2026).

Campbell's Nurseries & Garden Centers, Inc. — garden centre
8 km
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
10 km
Campbells — plant nursery
3 km
Midwest Natives Nursery, LLC — plant nursery
6 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.

Questions