What to Plant in August in Australia

Australian note: this page follows southern-hemisphere seasons, so August is in winter. The lists below are grouped by five climate zones: temperate, subtropical, tropical, arid and cool. The Australian Vegetable Garden Planner uses the same five zones. For every crop across the year, see the Australian vegetable planting calendar.

Warm days can trick you into sowing too soon. Heat-loving seeds need warm soil, so unless you have a polytunnel or heated tray, wait a few weeks. Days are noticeably longer and the change of season is close.

What to plant in August, by climate

Australia spans five growing climates, so one list cannot fit all of them. Find yours below, then read the notes for that climate. August falls in Australian winter.

Crop lists show what both Gardenate and Deep Green Permaculture list for that climate. The two share a common lineage, so we treat them as one view and use ABC Organic Gardener's monthly column as the independent check. "Start under cover" marks heat-lovers those lists include that ABC advises keeping out of cold soil.

Where three sources agree in August

These 8 crops are given for August by all three of the Perth (WA Waste Authority), Adelaide (Green Adelaide) and Melbourne (City of Darebin) guides. They are temperate-zone city sources, not a statewide rule, so treat them as a cross-check and not a promise for Sydney, Canberra, Hobart or anywhere in the tropics or arid inland. Most are crops these guides list for many months of the year, so the shorter list does not mean nothing else can be sown.

Temperate and cool gardens in August

• Sow spinach, peas, turnips, kale, broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, Asian greens, mustard, silverbeet, carrots, beetroot and radishes.
• In frost-free coastal areas, consider starting potatoes.
• This is the last call for bare-root trees and shrubs. Tidy broken roots first, and soak for half an hour before planting.

Subtropical gardens in August

• In the frost-free subtropics, start tomatoes, sweet corn, zucchini, climbing beans, cucumber, carrots, lettuce, basil, potatoes and beetroot.
• Wait until it is very warm for capsicums, eggplants, pumpkins and watermelons.

Tropical gardens in August

• Plant cucumbers, zucchini, squash, sweet corn, basil and okra, with perennials such as sweet potato, taro, lemongrass and passionfruit.

Arid and inland gardens in August

• A tricky month: warm sunny days, with nights that can fall below zero.
• Plant fast growers: radishes, turnips, Asian greens, mustard, lettuce, fennel and rocket.
• Plant seed potatoes if you can protect shoots from late frost.
• Early August is the first tomato sowing in ABC Gardening Australia's two-crop pattern for arid areas.

Garden jobs for August

• Finish pruning deciduous trees and shrubs.
• Feed fruit trees with compost and manure late in the month.
• Where frost is a risk, start summer seeds in trays under cover.

Plan August on paper

Draw your beds in the free Vegetable Garden Layout Planner Tool, then keep the season together in the Australian Vegetable Garden Planner, which has a sowing chart for every climate. See every crop across the year in the Australian planting calendar, or read the growing guides.

Month by month

• January
• February
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December

Questions about August

Common questions

Sources

• ABC Organic Gardener: What to plant in August
• Deep Green Permaculture: Australian gardening calendars
• Gardenate: Australia planting by zone, August
• ABC Gardening Australia: Top tomato tips

How we checked this

The table above uses three Tier 1 (government) sources for the temperate zone. We read the Perth and Adelaide guides on 4 November 2026 and checked the Melbourne guide on 3 November 2026.

• Green Adelaide, South Australian Government (Tier 1): what to plant when, the month lists and the plant-any-time list for Adelaide.
• Waste Authority of Western Australia (Tier 1): Edible School Garden Guide, the planting and harvest guide for Perth.
• City of Darebin, Victoria (Tier 1): Sow what when guide for Melbourne.

Sydney, Canberra, Hobart, Darwin, Cairns and Alice Springs lists have not been checked against a Tier 1 month table. The crop lists in the climate cards above come from the sources named in the Sources list and have not been changed by this check.

Added 4 November 2026: a Common questions section for August. They use only the two state-government guides above (Green Adelaide and the Waste Authority of Western Australia), and only where both lists were read. We show where the two guides differ and who says what. We did not add an answer for Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Hobart, Canberra or Darwin because no state-government month table was reached for those places.

Last reviewed: 31 October 2026