September Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia

It’s September, the beginning of spring, the time of new life and renewal! The weather is starting to warm up, but there are still cold days, rainy weather and winds to contend with.

Weather is still cold in Canberra and Hobart, with frosts in high inland regions. In Hobart days will be cool and cloudy, with an average of half a month of sunny weather, and half a month of rainy days. In the inland areas weather is variable, with cool nights or crisp and sunny days in higher regions.

Snow may fall in Canberra, and there will be snowfall in the Great Dividing Range and Mount Wellington in Tasmania, with occasional snow in Hobart.

Early spring is the best time to mulch garden beds, as the soil is still moist and slowly warming up.

This month is the last chance to plant bare rooted deciduous trees and shrubs, as they need time to establish before the summer heat arrives. Container grown ones with well-developed roots can be planted right through spring.

Things to Do This Month:

• Plant evergreen shrubs and trees (this includes citrus trees).
• Relocate evergreen shrubs – they can now regrow their roots during the mild weather.
• Last chance to plant bare-root deciduous trees, shrubs and vines (otherwise wait till autumn).
• Feed all fruit trees if you didn’t do so last month.
• Clean up old growth in perennial herbaceous (non-woody) plants to make room for new growth.
• Propagate plants by taking cuttings or layering (both ground layering and air layering).
• Divide perennials, such as chives.
• Tie canes of brambleberries to wires before the vigorous growth commences in early spring.
• Plant passionfruit after frosts have passed.
• For seedlings raised indoors in August, harden off by slowly increasing sun and exposure to outside temperatures for 7 to 10 days before planting out.
• In ponds, begin feeding fish small amounts of food often, so food is not left over to pollute the water.

Vegetables and Herbs to Grow in September (Cool & Alpine Climate)

September Seeds to Sow and Seedlings to Plant (Cool & Alpine Climate Australia)	Sow/Plant	Harvest (weeks)
Asparagus	plant crowns	2-3 years
Beetroot	dst	7-10
Broccoli	st	10-16
Burdock	d	17-18
Cabbage	st	8-15
Cape Gooseberry	s	14-16
Capsicum	s	10-12
Carrot	d	12-18
Cauliflower	st	15-22
Celeriac	s	14-28
Celery	s	17-18
Chilli*	s	9-11
Chives	st	7-11
Collard Greens	dst	8-11
Coriander (Cilantro)	dst	30-45
Daikon	d	8-10
Dill	dst	8-12
Eggplant	s	12-15
Endive	dst	10-11
Fennel (Bronze)	s	14-15
Fennel (Florence)	dst	14-20
Globe Artichokes	s	42-57
Horseradish	plant crowns	16-24
Kale	dst	7-9
Kohlrabi	dst	7-10
Leeks	dst	15-18
Lemon Balm	s	8-10
Lettuce	dst	8-12
Luffa	s	11-12
Marrow	s	12-17
Mint	s	8-12
Onion	dst	25-34
Parsley	dst	9-19
Parsnip	d	17-20
Peas	dst	9-11
Potato	plant seed potatoes	15-20
Pumpkin	s	15-20
Radish	d	5-7
Rocket	d	21-35 days
Sage	s	18 months
Salsify	d	14-21
Silverbeet (Swiss Chard)	dst	7-12
Snow Peas	dst	12-14
Spinach	dst	5-11
Spring Onions (Bunching Onions)	dst	6-10
Squash	s	7-8
Strawberry (seed)	s	12 months
Strawberry (plants)	t	11
Summer Savory	d	6-10
Sunflower	s	10-11
Sweet Corn	s	11-14
Sweet Marjoram	dst	8-10
Thyme	d	42-52
Turnip	d	6-9
Watermelon	s	9-14
Winter Savory	d	6-10
Zucchini (Courgette, Marrow)	s	6-9

Key:
d = sow seeds directly into ground
s = sow seeds into seed tray
ds = sow seeds directly into ground or seed tray
t = transplant seedlings (small plants) into larger pots or plant into ground
*= frost tender
**= sow after frost

Download printable PDF version of Gardening Calendar (Australian Cool & Alpine Climate) – September

To help improve these garden calendars, feedback and additional information from readers is greatly appreciated! Australia’s climate varies considerably, and local knowledge of when particular things need to be done in the garden are most helpful to others living in those area, so please feel free to share.