When to plant watermelons in Parma: 19 May – 20 August

In Parma, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 31 March to 23 July; plant into a greenhouse from 28 April to 20 August; plant out into open ground from 19 May to 20 August. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Bia Home & Garden (garden centre, 1 km) and Saracchi Piante (garden centre, 4 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Watermelon in Parma: soil, season and weather

In Parma the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 18 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 19 May, 62 days later.

Last spring frost	18 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	19 May, 62 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	28 April – 20 August; April outside: 7.7 °C at night, 18.4 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	29 November, 194 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	17 July – 18 October
Days left for picking	135
Daylight	13:45 on 21 April, 14:57 on 19 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, June, has 7 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Parma: care after planting

Planted on 19 May: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

19 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 Parma during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, July, averages 31.1 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: November (12.1 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in May, June and September–November (5.4–17.3 °C).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	21.9	12.1	127	15	14:49
June	28.4	17.3	50	7	15:34
July	31.1	19.6	55	8	15:16
August	30.7	19.6	62	8	14:06
September	25.2	15.1	72	9	12:34
October	19.3	10.8	105	9	11:02
November	12.1	5.4	101	10	9:36

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

Around Parma, Piacenza is 8 days earlier and Verona 10 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Modena	50 km	14 May – 21 August	5 days earlier
Mantua	54 km	14 May – 19 August	5 days earlier
Piacenza	58 km	11 May – 22 August	8 days earlier
Brescia	83 km	15 May – 19 August	4 days earlier
Bologna	87 km	16 May – 20 August	3 days earlier
Verona	88 km	29 May – 18 August	10 days later

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Parma

Buy plants ready to set out from 19 May to 20 August (from 28 April to 20 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 31 March to 23 July. Within 15 km of Parma OpenStreetMap lists 3 garden centres, 1 farm-supply shop, 3 plant nurseries, 3 markets and 2 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Bia Home & Garden — garden centre
Viale della Villetta 21 · Mon–Fri 09:00–13:00, 14:30–19:30; Sat–Sun 09:00–19:30 · 1 km
Saracchi Piante — garden centre
Strada Traversetolo 103a · 4 km
Azienda Agricola Cosimo Larovere — farm shop
Mon–Sat 10:30–12:30, 16:00–19:00 · 10 km
Parma Vivai — garden centre
7 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