When to plant zucchini in Dayton: 16 May – 23 August

In Dayton, zucchini: sow for seedlings from 4 April to 2 August; plant into a greenhouse from 25 April to 23 August; plant out into open ground from 16 May to 23 August.

Zucchini in Dayton: soil, season and weather

In Dayton the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 17 April, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the zucchini card — only around 16 May, 29 days later.

Last spring frost	17 April
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	16 May, 29 days after the last frost
First autumn frost	9 November, 177 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	36
First harvest, if planted in this window	21 June – 28 September
Days left for picking	141
Daylight	13:38 on 25 April, 14:23 on 16 May
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, September, has 8 rainy days

The same dates in Dayton hold for Cucumber, Bell Pepper, Eggplant, Pumpkin and Watermelon.

Zucchini in Dayton: care after planting

Planted on 16 May: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

Pests and diseases of zucchini to watch for:

Weather in Dayton during the zucchini season

About 641 mm of rain falls in the season; September is the driest month (74 mm) and May the wettest (125 mm).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
May	22.6	12.4	125	16	14:21
June	27.6	17.3	102	12	14:58
July	29.3	19.7	104	14	14:44
August	28.1	18.5	84	11	13:46
September	26	15.7	74	8	12:30
October	19.3	9.6	77	9	11:12
November	11.2	2.5	75	8	10:01

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Zucchini in nearby cities

Around Dayton, Cincinnati is 3 days earlier and Fort Wayne 5 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Cincinnati	75 km	13 May – 23 August	3 days earlier
Columbus	104 km	20 May – 16 August	4 days later
Fort Wayne	167 km	21 May – 16 August	5 days later
Indianapolis	168 km	16 May – 20 August	same day
Frankfort	183 km	13 May – 17 August	3 days earlier
Lexington	198 km	15 May – 21 August	1 day earlier

Where to buy zucchini plants and seeds near Dayton

Buy plants ready to set out from 16 May to 23 August (from 25 April to 23 August for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 4 April to 2 August. Within 15 km of Dayton OpenStreetMap lists 9 garden centres, 1 market and 2 farm shops (collected 29 October 2026).

North Dayton Garden Center — garden centre
5 km
Home depot — garden centre
10 km
Home Depot Garden Center — garden centre
13 km
Knollwood Garden Center & Landscaping — garden centre
10 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