When to plant pumpkin in Boston

In Boston, typical last spring frost is April 10 and typical first fall frost is November 8. Typical last spring frost: April 10. Pumpkin in Boston is doable with planning outdoors. 98 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (90 days) but not slow ones (120 days).

Pumpkin

How to grow Pumpkin Boston climate Weekly temperatures and windows

Where are you growing?

Tight fit

Not realistic in greenhouse

Comfortable in a cold frame

Pumpkin in Boston is doable with planning outdoors. 98 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (90 days) but not slow ones (120 days).

When to plantMay 30 – June 13

Harvest: August 28 – October 30
Season vs crop: 98 grow days vs 90–120 needed
Typical frost (last spring – first fall): April 10 – November 8

Pumpkin in Boston is doable with planning outdoors. 98 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (90 days) but not slow ones (120 days).

Planting conditions

Direct sow
Grow outdoors
Harvest

Local activity windows for this place and growing method. Blue fill is usually too cold for this plant. Dashed lines are typical last and first frost.

Suitable growing days in a row98

Days to harvest90–120 days from seed

May 30 – Jun 13

Direct sow

Jun 14 – Aug 27

Grow outdoors

Aug 28 – Oct 30

Harvest

Activity	Window	Notes
Direct sow	May 30 – Jun 13	Plant outdoors in this window.
Grow outdoors	Jun 14 – Aug 27	Plants grow outdoors until harvest.
Harvest	Aug 28 – Oct 30	Expected harvest from typical days to harvest.

Direct sow
Grow outdoors
Harvest

Blue fill is usually too cold for this plant. Dashed lines are typical last and first frost (35 seasons (1991–2025)). Adjust a week or two for your conditions.

Planting and growing across the year

Planting is the sow / plant-out window. Growing is daytime air versus this plant’s ideal (21 – 35 °C70 – 95 °F21 – 35 °C (70 – 95 °F)) and tolerable (16 – 38 °C61 – 100 °F16 – 38 °C (61 – 100 °F)) ranges.

Ideal / plantable
Tolerable
Too cold
Too hot
Outside window

Planting uses sow / plant-out rules; growing shows daytime air against this plant’s ideal and tolerable ranges.

Key dates

Typical last spring frostApril 10

Low-risk last spring frostApril 18

Typical first fall frostNovember 8

Low-risk first fall frostOctober 30

Frost-free days211

Outdoor sow dateMay 30

Direct sow windowMay 30 – June 13

Suitable growing windowMay 30 – September 4 (98 days)

Expected harvestAugust 28 – October 30

How these dates are judged

Ideal conditions: Daytime air from 21 – 35 °C70 – 95 °F21 – 35 °C (70 – 95 °F).
Suitable conditions: Daytime air from 16 – 38 °C61 – 100 °F16 – 38 °C (61 – 100 °F).
Last frost and first frost: Typical spring and fall frost dates for Boston, shown in the key dates.
Days to harvest: 90–120 days from seed, from typical days to harvest.
Sowing window: Dated sow and harvest bars use frost dates, soil minima, night limits, and last-sow count-back from typical crop timing. Air ratings on the weekly chart colour only weeks inside that same window — see weekly temperatures and windows.

Other plants for Boston

Calculated by Plan & Plant. Method. Data 35 seasons (1991–2025).

Frost and suitability dates are typical figures from climate statistics.

Based on 35 years (1991–2025) of ERA5-Land data from Open-Meteo, for an area of about 10 km. Typical dates, not a guarantee.

Dates for Boston use ERA5-Land cell 42.40, -71.10. How we calculated this · Algorithm 2026-10-season-12.

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