When to plant zucchini in Raleigh: 18 April – 2 September

In Raleigh, zucchini: sow for seedlings from 7 March to 12 August; plant into a greenhouse from 28 March to 2 September; plant out into open ground from 18 April to 2 September. For plants and seeds, the places nearby include Jones Fruit & Produce (farm shop, 2 km) and Porter Farms & Nursery Farm Market (farm shop, 13 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Zucchini in Raleigh: soil, season and weather

In Raleigh the soil, not frost, sets the date: the last frost is over around 13 March, but the top 7 cm of soil reaches 18 °C — the minimum on the zucchini card — only around 18 April, 36 days later.

Last spring frost	13 March
Top 7 cm of soil at 18 °C	18 April, 36 days after the last frost
First autumn frost	19 November, 215 days after the start
Days in the bed to the first harvest (card)	36
First harvest, if planted in this window	24 May – 8 October
Days left for picking	179
Daylight	12:25 on 28 March, 13:11 on 18 April
Watering outdoors when fruiting (card)	every 3 days; the driest month, October, has 7 rainy days

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

Zucchini in Raleigh: care after planting

Planted on 18 April: in the first weeks water every 4 days.

Pests and diseases of zucchini to watch for:

Weather in Raleigh during the zucchini season

About 921 mm of rain falls in the season; October is the driest month (77 mm) and September the wettest (156 mm).

Month	Day, °C	Night, °C	Rain, mm	Rainy days	Daylight on the 15th
April	22.4	10.9	97	9	13:05
May	26.1	15.8	124	12	14:03
June	30	19.7	111	13	14:34
July	32	22.3	136	16	14:22
August	30.2	21.2	137	15	13:32
September	27.6	18.4	156	12	12:26
October	22.4	12.8	77	7	11:19
November	16.6	6.7	83	7	10:18

ERA5 2016–2025, Open-Meteo

Zucchini in nearby cities

Around Raleigh, Charleston is 37 days earlier and Richmond 12 days later.

City	Distance	Date	Difference
Greensboro	109 km	28 April – 27 August	10 days later
Wilmington	186 km	2 April – 14 September	16 days earlier
Charlotte	208 km	13 April – 27 August	5 days earlier
Richmond	224 km	30 April – 30 August	12 days later
Columbia	294 km	28 March – 12 September	21 days earlier
Charleston	353 km	12 March – 3 October	37 days earlier

Where to buy zucchini plants and seeds near Raleigh

Buy plants ready to set out from 18 April to 2 September (from 28 March to 2 September for an unheated greenhouse); seed for raising your own is sown from 7 March to 12 August. Within 15 km of Raleigh OpenStreetMap lists 8 garden centres, 2 farm-supply shops, 1 plant nursery, 4 markets and 6 farm shops (collected 20 October 2026).

Jones Fruit & Produce — farm shop
Farmers Market Drive 1225, 27603 Raleigh · 2 km
Porter Farms & Nursery Farm Market — farm shop
Ten Ten Road 7615, 27603 Raleigh · 13 km
Crazy Lady's Fresh Produce — farm shop
Honeycutt Road 8401, 27615 Raleigh · 14 km
Walmart Garden Center — garden centre
6 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