When to plant watermelons in Nîmes: 17 May – 22 August

In Nîmes, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 29 March to 25 July; plant into a greenhouse from 26 April to 22 August; plant out into open ground from 17 May to 22 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Jardiland (garden centre, 2 km) and Truffaut (garden centre, 3 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Nîmes: soil, season and weather

In Nîmes the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 15 February, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 17 May, 91 days later.

Last spring frost	15 February
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	17 May, 91 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	26 April – 22 August; April outside: 8.6 °C at night, 19 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	1 December, 198 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	15 July – 20 October
Days left for picking	139
Daylight	13:36 on 19 April, 14:47 on 17 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, July, has 3 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Nîmes: care after planting

Planted on 17 May: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

17 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 Nîmes during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 32 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: November (15 °C) and December (12.1 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in May, June and September–December (4.2–17.2 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	22.9	12.3	86	9	14:43
June	28.5	17.2	43	7	15:27
July	32	19.8	16	3	15:09
August	31.5	19.5	34	4	14:02
September	26.2	15.6	80	6	12:34
October	21.2	12.2	119	9	11:04
November	15	7.2	102	10	9:41
December	12.1	4.2	69	9	8:56

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Nîmes, Perpignan is 23 days earlier and Saint-Étienne 28 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Avignon	38 km	18 May – 23 August	1 day later
Montpellier	46 km	8 May – 18 September	9 days earlier
Marseille	101 km	from 10 May	7 days earlier
Valence	129 km	29 May – 12 August	12 days later
Perpignan	173 km	24 April – 2 September	23 days earlier
Saint-Étienne	178 km	14 June – 8 August	28 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Nîmes

Buy plants ready to set out from 17 May to 22 August (from 26 April to 22 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 29 March to 25 July. Within 15 km of Nîmes OpenStreetMap lists 7 garden centres, 4 farm-supply shops, 2 plant nurseries, 8 markets and 5 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Coopérative oléicole de Bezouce — farm shop
12 km
Mas La Touraine — farm shop
6 km
Jardiland — garden centre
Mon–Fri 09:00–12:30, 14:00–19:00; Sat 09:00–19:00; Sun 10:00–12:30, 14:30–19:00 · 2 km · jardiland.com
Truffaut — garden centre
09:30–19:00 · 3 km · truffaut.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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