When to plant watermelons in Salta: 26 September – 20 March

In Salta, watermelon: sow for seedlings from 8 August to 21 February; plant into a greenhouse from 5 September to 20 March; plant out into open ground from 26 September to 20 March.

Watermelon in Salta: soil, season and weather

In Salta the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 10 August, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the watermelon card — only around 26 September, 47 days later.

Last spring frost	10 August
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	26 September, 47 days after the last frost
Into an unheated greenhouse	5 September – 20 March; September outside: 9.4 °C at night, 23 °C by day; card 18–35 °C
First autumn frost	29 June, 277 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	59
First harvest, if planted in this window	24 November – 18 May
Days left for picking	218
Daylight	11:32 on 29 August, 12:11 on 26 September
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 5 days; the driest month, September, has 5 rainy days

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

Watermelon in Salta: care after planting

Planted on 26 September: in the first weeks water every 5 days.

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

26 September — 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 Salta during the watermelon season

No month of the season averages above the watermelon card's 18–35 °C by day; the warmest, January, averages 25.8 °C. Months that stay below 18 °C even by day on average: May (17.3 °C) and June (16.1 °C). Nights average below 18 °C in every month of the season, from 5.5 °C to 16.8 °C.

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
September	23	9.4	22	5	11:56
October	24.5	12.1	74	11	12:39
November	25.4	14.5	115	14	13:19
December	25.4	15.8	203	19	13:40
January	25.8	16.8	254	20	13:30
February	24.8	16.2	238	20	12:56
March	23.1	15	180	19	12:16
April	20.5	12.6	133	15	11:31
May	17.3	8.6	56	11	10:56
June	16.1	5.5	23	5	10:36

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Watermelon in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant watermelon earlier than Salta; the closest date is in San Salvador de Jujuy, 4 days earlier.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
San Salvador de Jujuy	68 km	22 September – 15 March	4 days earlier
San Miguel de Tucumán	225 km	from 15 September	11 days earlier
Tarija	369 km	11 September – 3 March	15 days earlier
San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca	411 km	30 August – 19 March	27 days earlier
Calama	442 km	from 9 September	17 days earlier
La Rioja	533 km	30 August – 5 March	27 days earlier

Where to buy watermelon plants and seeds near Salta

Buy plants ready to set out from 26 September to 20 March (from 5 September to 20 March for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 8 August to 21 February. Within 15 km of Salta OpenStreetMap lists 1 garden centre, 1 plant nursery and 5 markets (collected 27 October 2026).

Mercado San Miguel — market
1 km
Feria Balcarce — market
1 km
Feria Ameghino — market
1 km
Mercado Evita — market
2 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