When to plant watermelons in Montpellier: 8 May – 18 September

In Montpellier, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 20 March to 21 August; plant into a greenhouse from 17 April to 18 September; plant out into open ground from 8 May to 18 September.

Watermelon in Montpellier: soil, season and weather

In Montpellier the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 27 January, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 8 May, 101 days later.

Last spring frost	27 January
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	8 May, 101 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	17 April – 18 September; April outside: 9.7 °C at night, 18.1 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	28 December, 234 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	6 July – 16 November
Days left for picking	175
Daylight	13:10 on 10 April, 14:26 on 8 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, July, has 3 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Montpellier: care after planting

Planted on 8 May: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

8 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 Montpellier during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 30.1 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: November (15.6 °C) and December (12.7 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in May and September–December (5.6–16.6 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	22	13.4	73	8	14:42
June	26.9	18.3	39	6	15:25
July	30.1	20.6	17	3	15:08
August	29.5	20.2	33	4	14:01
September	25.1	16.6	71	6	12:33
October	20.9	13.3	103	11	11:05
November	15.6	8.4	97	11	9:42
December	12.7	5.6	68	9	8:58

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Montpellier, Perpignan is 14 days earlier and Valence 21 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Nîmes	46 km	17 May – 22 August	9 days later
Avignon	84 km	18 May – 23 August	10 days later
Marseille	125 km	from 10 May	2 days later
Perpignan	129 km	24 April – 2 September	14 days earlier
Valence	168 km	29 May – 12 August	21 days later
Toulouse	196 km	29 May – 19 August	21 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Montpellier

Buy plants ready to set out from 8 May to 18 September (from 17 April to 18 September for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 20 March to 21 August. Within 15 km of Montpellier OpenStreetMap lists 20 garden centres, 11 plant nurseries, 47 markets and 14 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Halles Castellane — market
Mon–Sat 07:00–20:00; Sun 07:00–13:30 · 0 km
Marché des Beaux-Arts — market
Mon–Sat 07:00–13:30 · 1 km
Marché d'Antigone — market
Wed, Sun 07:00–13:30 · 1 km
Les dimanches du Peyrou — market
Sun 07:30–14:00 · 1 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.

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