Stephen Albert
October is the month of greatest change in the southern hemisphere vegetable garden; spring is here.
Now is the time to plant with the summer reward in mind. Plant tomato, eggplant, capsicum, cucumber, sweet corn, marrow, melons, zucchini, and pumpkin this month in all but the coldest regions of the southern hemisphere.
Plant beets and radishes. Water them well and feed them with compost tea every two weeks going forward.
Plant salad mix and continue to plant them every two weeks for successive crops that you can begin to harvest in just a few weeks.
Plant cucumbers next to low walls or fences. Place pumpkins among corn to provide living mulch which will keep the soil cool and moist. Plant beans where they can begin to twist their way to the top.
Pile up extra straw and compost around potatoes as they begin their spring growth.
Place coddling moth traps in apple and pear trees now.
October Planting List for the Southern Hemisphere:
Here is a planting schedule by region for the Southern Hemisphere in October:
Temperate regions: Vegetables: beans, beets (beetroot), cabbage, cape gooseberry, capsicum (sweet pepper), carrots, celery, celeriac, chicory, chayote (choko), chilies, cress, cucumber, eggplant, endive, leeks, lettuce, marrow (courgette), melons, mustard, spring onion, parsnip, peas, pumpkin, radish rhubarb crown, rosella, salsify, Swiss chard (silverbeet), squash, sweet corn, sweet potato, tomato, zucchini. Herbs: basil, borage, caraway, celeriac, chamomile, chervil, chicory, chilies, chives, coriander, dill, fennel, hyssop, lemon balm, oregano, parsley, salad burnet, thyme.
Tropical and subtropical northern regions: Vegetables: beans, beets (beetroot), buckwheat, cabbage, cape gooseberry, capsicum (sweet pepper), carrots, celery, celeriac, Chinese cabbage, choko (chayote), cress, cucumber, eggplant, fennel, lettuce, marrow, melons, mustard, okra, parsnip, peas, potatoes, pumpkin, radish, rhubarb crowns, rosella, silverbeet (Swiss chard), spring onion, squash, strawberry runners, sweet corn, sweet potato, tomato, zucchini. Herbs: basil, borage, caraway, chamomile, celeriac, chervil, coriander, dill, hyssop, lemon balm, marjoram, oregano, salad burnet, thyme.
Cooler southern regions: Vegetables: artichokes, beans, beet (beetroot), Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cape gooseberry, capsicum (sweet pepper), carrots, celery, celeriac, cress, cucumber, eggplant, endive, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, marrow, okra, spring onion, parsnip, peas, potato tubers, radish, rhubarb crowns, rutabaga (Swedes), salsify, Swiss chard (silverbeet), spinach, squash, sweet corn, tomato, zucchini. Herbs: basil, borage, caraway, celeriac, chamomile, chervil, chives, coriander, hyssop, lemon balm, oregano, parsley, salad burnet, thyme.
October Harvest Schedule for the Southern Hemisphere:
Here is a roundup of vegetables and fruits ready for harvest during October in the Southern Hemisphere: Vegetables: Artichoke, asparagus, beet (beetroot), broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrot, celeriac, celery, Chinese cabbage, lettuce, peas, Swiss chard (silverbeet), spinach. Fruit: Avocado, cape gooseberries, lemons, limes, mandarins, mango, mulberry, navel oranges, paw paw, raspberries, strawberries, tangelos.
