October is the mid-spring period, where flowers bloom in abundance, and the warmer weather with rain bringing ideal conditions for lush plant growth.
In the northern regions there are more hot sunny days, with rain and humidity increasing and more thunderstorms. Darwin is still in a mainly dry period with considerable fire risk, averaging 6 days of rain for the month.
Things to Do This Month:
- Plant evergreen shrubs and trees (including citrus trees).
- Relocate evergreen shrubs, as they’re able to regrow their roots during the mild weather.
- Plant potted deciduous fruit trees and vines, since they are in leaf and have growing roots, they can be planted anytime, but the best time is in spring & autumn when weather is mild.
- Relocate any self-seeded annuals to better locations in the garden.
- Tidy up overgrown plants and tie growing vines back to supports or wires.
- Continue propagating plants by taking cuttings or layering (ground layering and air layering).
- Last chance to remove dead winter growth, and to dig up and divide perennial plants
- Clean out ponds and water gardens, divide waterlilies, plant new aquatic plants.
Vegetables and Herbs to Grow in October (Tropical Climate)
| October Seeds to Sow and Seedlings to Plant (Tropical Climate Australia) | Sow/Plant | Harvest (weeks) |
| Basil | st | 10-12 |
| Cowpeas (Black Eye Peas) | d | 11-14 |
| Ginger | plant root | 25 |
| Mustard Greens | dst | 5-8 |
| Rosella | dst | 21-25 |
| Sweet Corn | dt | 11-14 |
| Sweet Potato (Kumara) | plant crowns | 15-17 |
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 Tropical Climate) – October
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.