When to plant watermelons in Modena: 14 May – 21 August

In Modena, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 26 March to 24 July; plant into a greenhouse from 23 April to 21 August; plant out into open ground from 14 May to 21 August.

Watermelon in Modena: soil, season and weather

In Modena the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 20 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 14 May, 55 days later.

Last spring frost	20 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	14 May, 55 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	23 April – 21 August; April outside: 7.7 °C at night, 19.3 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	30 November, 200 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	12 July – 19 October
Days left for picking	141
Daylight	13:30 on 16 April, 14:45 on 14 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, July, has 7 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Modena: care after planting

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

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

14 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 Modena during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 31.9 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: November (13.1 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in May and September–November (5.4–15.6 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	23	12.6	109	14	14:48
June	29.5	18	49	7	15:33
July	31.9	20.2	47	7	15:15
August	31.5	20	59	8	14:05
September	26.1	15.6	74	8	12:34
October	20.4	10.9	76	8	11:02
November	13.1	5.4	83	10	9:37

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Modena, Ferrara is 1 day earlier and Verona 15 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Bologna	37 km	16 May – 20 August	2 days later
Parma	50 km	19 May – 20 August	5 days later
Mantua	58 km	14 May – 19 August	same day
Ferrara	58 km	13 May – 19 August	1 day earlier
Verona	88 km	29 May – 18 August	15 days later
Florence	101 km	28 May – 18 August	14 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Modena

Buy plants ready to set out from 14 May to 21 August (from 23 April to 21 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 26 March to 24 July. Within 15 km of Modena OpenStreetMap lists 6 garden centres, 4 farm-supply shops, 6 plant nurseries, 5 markets and 9 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Vivai Pellacani — plant nursery
15 km
Ricci Agricoltura — farm supply
13 km · ricciagricoltura.it
Conad 4 Passi — market
12 km
Azienda Agricola Villa Canapa — farm shop
8 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